I’m curious to hear everyone’s opinion of this. I saw someone mention they store their booster boxes in a safety deposit box. I understand for very expensive items. But a downside I see if that you can look at your collection whenever you want.
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Since my most expensive items are things I actually like to look at, I’d like for them to be in my proximity. Sure, it may not be as protected and insured as having it in a safety deposit box, and a bit more risky, but if I ever got to a point where I need to go to a secondary place to view items in my collection, I don’t think that would bring me much joy.
I’m low-key currently looking for a relatively small safe that can house a dozen or so slabs. Don’t want to hijack your thread, but I’m curious what others can recommend in terms of safes, so hit me up if you have recommendations.
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No it’s okay! Definitely want to hear what others suggest. My slabs are in a box in my closet. Because of like you I want to look at my cards
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If you’re looking for insight on a good safe as well as a horror story here are a couple threads on the matter. @silversnorlax204 has many great threads on the storage of your cards if you’re ever curious.
To really answer your question. I can see the safety element for sure and with higher ends cards I would be willing to keep them in other areas so long as I can ensure as much safety as possible at the off sight location.
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Although when I still lived in Japan I used to have my favourite cards (trophies and whatnot) literally sitting on a shelf for all to behold, after moving back to France (which is way less safe than Japan in terms of burglary rate) I did decide to put all of my most valuable cards in an insured bank safe. I do miss getting to look at my precious collection whenever I want, but I just wouldn’t feel comfortable having them at home. Maybe later on I’ll consider getting a fireproof mini-safe to keep everything at home, but for now I just look at pictures and videos whenever I miss them 
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How good is a bank safe?
Well it’s a small armoured safe that won’t open without several keys, in a camera-controlled room protected behind an armoured door deep inside a bank, so if it’s safety we’re talking about it’s, well, pretty safe.
In case the safe still somehow gets broken in or damaged in a fire or such, the safe rental also comes with an insurance – a set amount unrelated to the contents of the safe, since said contents are secret. Last time I checked I didn’t see any sign of humidity issue or anything.
The only real issue is that I more or less have to go through Gringotts whenever I want to see my most valuable cards… 
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Oh very interesting. I wonder if my bank has that
If you have high value assets in your home, it’s not a bad idea to purchase a firearm for home/self protection. Read up on your state laws regarding the use of it, and laws such as stand your ground, etc.
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So ive been thinking alot about this as well. Collections finally reaching a point where i feel it needs better protection. I have some smaller stuff for display but i saw a modified firearm safe on reddit and i really loved that idea. I dont like guns but the size is perfect for binders and extras. I live in a decent area so im not too worried about theft, my biggest concern is my kids 
Edit: Phrasing
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PSA: Safety deposit boxes are not safe and secure. I would never store anything of value in them.
They provide an illusion of safety.
“There are no federal laws governing the boxes; no rules require banks to compensate customers if their property is stolen or destroyed.”
As others have said, if you really have a collection valuable enough to warrant special measures, get a fireproof gun safe. Make sure the safe is large and heavy; it should require multiple people to move and be in a place where it is a pain to move.
There is also the concept of ‘security through obscurity’. The security provided by storing cards, slabs, and sealed product in an anonymous cardboard box marked “Family photo albums” or “baby clothes” cannot be overstated.
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This is blatantly untrue - see my later post. Safety deposit boxes are not secure and banks do not need to give you anything if the contents get misplaced or stolen.
This is the answer I was looking for! Thank you!
I don’t know if a vast majority of E4 members are in the US (seeing the number of people in these conversations mentioning “gun safes” or straight out recommending defending your collection with a firearm, I now realise that might be the case!), but it bears remembering that not everyone is, and some banks in other countries do offer insurance and compensation (see my post above).
Looking at everyone’s input, it certainly looks like local legislations and public safety, pretty much like humidity levels, are all variables to take into consideration when deciding how to protect one’s collection.
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How is a safety deposit box not secure? Granted I couldnt get past the NYT paywall to read the article, but is the only reason because contents aren’t insured?
If banks aren’t incentivized to maintain a reputation of security, I don’t know who is.
Here are my two cents:
Safe deposit boxes (i.e., note that they are not called “safety” deposit boxes by any banks in the U.S.) are not the way to go. Many banks do not run A/C regularly in their safe deposit box areas outside of their working hours and most have a dollar limit on what can be stored there. If you look on the old sports forums, you can see decades worth of horror stories: mixups, flooding, humidity issues, $10,000 insurance caps, etc.
I would recommend sending your expensive cards to a well-respected vault (PWCC Vault, eBay Vault, Collectors Vault, etc.). They have security 24/7, A/C running 24/7 with backup generators, insurance on all of your items, and ways that you can view your cards online, in-person, and on occasion at your convenience through insured shipment back/forth.
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To answer the OP’s question, I use a combination of a home safe and displaying cards on my shelves.
I could see myself using a vault service like PWCC or eBay in the future, or a safety deposit box at my bank.
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Dyl has a good answer below as well. They are ‘safe’ in the sense that it is very difficult for someone to physically rob a bank vault. However, that is a very rare occurrence. They are not “safe” for your items because they are not temperature controlled, and do not have cameras inside the vault. Additionally, unless you are hyper-vigilant about paying your monthly dues on time, and updating your physical address if you move, banks can dispose of the contents of your box however they please - trash, auction, etc.
In short, they are a risky way to store valuables because the box contents are not insured or monitored, and box contents can easily be disposed of.
People do not need to fear robbery. They need to fear a missed payment or missed notification from their bank, and then poof their box is emptied.
I was thinking pwcc/ebay vault. Have to do more research on it
I use both and would recommend them. 10/10
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