Protecting Your Collection

News: Welcome to the Canadian Paper Money Forum.

How does one protect their collection from theives and robberies?  I'm just a casual collector and have some pretty cool bills I've accumulated over the years.  One of my major worries is loosing them to a house robbery.  

My collection is very small and isn't worth a whole lot but to me it means a lot!

Any tips would be greatly appreciated!

I have insurance on the contents of my home but this covers only $300 worth of "cash" (and my deductible is $500), so if someone were to steal my whole collection, I would get the sum of $300.  According to my policy, coin collections are protected up to $300 per item, but no mention is made of paper money collections, so I'm pretty sure my insurance company would simply consider this "cash".

Buying extra insurance to cover my paper money collection would have been too expensive, so I just rented a safety deposit box.  I get the employee rate as I work for a bank, but the regular rate for a box 5 inches high by 5 inches wide by 24 inches long is $80 per YEAR plus GST - pretty good if you ask me.  And you can "visit" your notes as often as you wish (but if you get the urge outside of banking hours, you can look at scans of your notes until you can see them in person).

By the way, I've seen other posts saying that packets of silica should be used to protect your notes from mildew when stored in a safe (in one's house, I assume).  Would you also need to be concerned about moisture/mildew affecting your notes stored in a safety deposit box?  The environment in my bank's safety depost box area doesn't seem that much different than my own home, except the SDB area is cooler than my home (which is probably a GOOD thing?).

Safes are also quite good. You can find some good ones that have double locks (key and combination lock) for reasonable prices at your local walmart or canadian tire store.

Venga50 is right the bank is the best thing.

Put your money collection in a Safety Box at your bank. That's the best way. I have been stolen 5 years ago and Safety box at home are a joke. They open it! I did not own a cheap one from Wal-Mart I had a small safe coming from an old National Bank. They carried the safe ( and It was very heavy) and use my own torch in my hardware room. happily I started already to move my collection to the bank, so I have not lost everything, but I have lost very very good bills coming from my great father's collection especally 1954 series. Probably these bills have been used to buy some marijuana  :-/

The bank is the best idea, I must agree.  It is inexpensive, and the protection is there.  This of the insurance you would have to pay on your house if they actually offered it on paper money collections...it would be ridiculously high.  My thiefs bought video games, electronics and probably cocaine (known users).  You really cannot put a price on violation of privacy though.  
Hudson

Hudson, I remember your posts a little while ago about the robbery you suffered.

The bank is the best idea, I must agree.  It is inexpensive, and the protection is there.  This of the insurance you would have to pay on your house if they actually offered it on paper money collections...it would be ridiculously high.  My thiefs bought video games, electronics and probably cocaine (known users).  You really cannot put a price on violation of privacy though.  
Hudson

Does this mean that they caught the robbers, and if so how much of your property were you able to get back?  If/when these thugs are convicted, will you update us to let us know what they are sentenced to and if you will be able to recoup your losses for any items not recovered, e.g. by a civil suit or a wage garnishment (in the unlikely event that these bums had and will still have jobs)?

Thanks for your replies!  I'm thinking of getting a small deposit box very soon.  

I would also assume keeping quiet about your collection would also be a great idea as you never know who will get this information and 'gossip' travels fast!

My friend's house was robbed several years ago and the cops brought up a very interesting point.  They told him that a lot more robberies happen in the second half of every month as their social security has run out by then and their looking for some quick cash.

Sorry to hear about your losses!  I must admit some of my collection was stolen 10 years ago or so by a family member!  I am still very bitter about it and to be honest with you I don't know how much I really lost!

Has anyone recovered your collection after it was stolen?

What if you keep a detailed record of all your notes?  Can you get them back if you locate them?(Now I know that's very difficult)

I have everything stored in a 10"x5" safety deposit box at the bank. This costs me about $145 per year, but it is deductible on your income tax.

I store very little at home, and what I do have is stored in a safe.

I also have my entire collection archived in my website, with scans for many notes. This gives me a way to know precisely what is in my collection at all times, and also allows me to show off my collection safely to anyone, anywhere, anytime.

 I don't like the idea of safes in the house, because as soon as someone knows you have a safe, you have basically put a target on your house.

I kept mine for years buried in storage lockers or on the floor under the stairs of a house where I discovered that when it rained the basement leaked.  Fortunately, though much other stuff was damaged, my paper money was not.

I now have a safety deposit box, which I'm pretty sure costs only about $45 per year.  I also have on my computer all the serial numbers of my bills plus their condition.  Some of the bills I scanned as well.  As I have a laptop, I also have a back-up hard drive(?) so that if the laptop gets stolen I still have a record.

Good idea Valerie.  I do something similar where I maintain an Excel spreadsheet, and for each of my banknotes, I record the serial number, condition, date I acquired the note, how much I paid for it, what it's worth now, and where the note is stored (i.e. in my safety deposit box or elsewhere).

I keep one printout and data CD of my inventory at home, and one copy in my safety deposit box so if my home burns to the ground I'll have a backup copy in my SDB.

Coincidentally, this week I asked the manager of my bank's SDB area if mildew could end up forming on paper items stored in a SDB.  He said he was not aware of mildew being a problem, but paper goods would become more "fragile" over time.

BWJM - or anyone with this info - if you ARE supposed to keep silica pouches (like the ones that come in the box when you buy shoes), how many should you use, where can you find them (other than shoeboxes!) and how often should you change them?

Thanks!

BWJM - or anyone with this info - if you ARE supposed to keep silica pouches (like the ones that come in the box when you buy shoes), how many should you use, where can you find them (other than shoeboxes!) and how often should you change them?

Sorry pal, I don't have a good answer for you. Perhaps someone else in the community does.

Ask your pharmacist to save them for you.  Every pill botle has one or more, and they go into the garbage when empty.