New Delhi | Jagran Business Office: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has decided to change the rules for bank lockers and announced new guidelines for safe deposit in lockers and safe custody facilities offered by banks. The central bank made the decision after receiving comments and complaints from consumers from various banks as well as the Association of Indian Banks (IBA).
Take a look at these new locker guidelines:
1. There are cases where, the locker lessor no longer manages the locker or no longer pays the respective charges, therefore, to ensure that the locker lessor makes the timely payment of the locker rents, the bank has the power to take a term deposit at the time of the allotment locker. This amount will include both three years’ rent and the cost of opening the locker.
2. Banks are not allowed to request term deposits from current locker holders or people who already have operational lockers.
3. If the bank has already taken the locker rent in advance, a particular amount of the advance amount will be refunded to customers. Apart from this, in the event of natural disasters, banks are required to inform their customers as soon as possible.
4. If the contents of the lockers are damaged or lost, banks should always be prepared with a comprehensive board approved policy detailing their responsibility.
5. The things that involve the maintenance of the lockers are:
* Correct operation of the locker system
* Make sure there is no unauthorized access to the lockers
6. According to the new provisions, banks will not be liable for any damage or loss of property of the locker due to natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, etc.
7. Apart from this, banks will include an additional clause in the locker contract to ensure that the locker tenant does not keep any dangerous items in the locker.
9. The banks have fixed 100 times the amount of the annual rent, in the event of fraud made by the professional of the bank, fire or building collapse.
Posted by: Mallika Mehzabeen
