Should I purchase a second hand safe? On the one hand safes are built to last so there would be no reason why a second hand safe would have compromised security as long as it wasn’t damaged. Buying a used safe will of course save you money but should not be a compromise on quality or security.
Compromise on security?
We would always recommend buying from a reputable dealer who is a member of Eurosafe, like ourselves. However, if you were buying one from an individual through ebay or another channel, instead of a reputable dealer, could there be an issue with security? For example;
- Could the seller have kept a set of keys and then plan to break in at a later date? If the safe has been sent to you or delivered, your address would be known to the seller.
- If the locking mechanism had not been checked properly, it could fail, leaving you with either a breach in security or a situation where you would need to get your own safe broken into!
- If you were buying a very old safe, it may not meet the standards required by your insurance company, so this would be worth checking.
So enough doom and gloom, if you buy from a reputable company or dealer, you can buy yourself a very good quality safe that will have no security issues. Here are a few things to bear in mind…
Used or reconditioned?
Firstly there is a difference between buying a used safe and buying a professionally reconditioned safe. A used safe will have been cleaned and lock mechanisms hopefully checked. But reconditioned safes are used safes that have been reconditioned to British Standard guideline 5758 and a reputable dealer should give a 1 year warranty on all moving parts. Here are some other points to ask your dealer:
- All the key locks should be changed and supplied with new keys.
- The combination locks should be fully serviced and reset.
- All internal bolt work should be cleaned and lubricated.
- All the relocking devices should be checked to ensure they are free running and operating to the highest standard.
- A bonus would be that the dealer spray painted them inside and out, so that they look like new.
If you would like to find out more about reconditioned or second hand safes, please do give us a call on 0117 9674994 and we can talk you through the safes we have and your specific requirements.