Debunking The Myth Of Under-Floor Safe Security

No Under-Floor Safe Is Insurance Rated Or Has Certified Burglary Resistance

There is a mistaken perception, encouraged by under-floor safe installers, that underfloor safes, although disruptive and messy to install, offer a high degree of protection from burglary due to the fact they are surrounded in concrete and concealed. In the real world this perception of security is entirely false. The results of burglaries clearly demonstrate that not only do professional burglars normally look for and locate an under-floor safe, but when they do so it is likely a welcome discovery.

No Under-Floor Safe Is Insurance Rated Or Has Certified Burglary Resistance

Apart from the fact an under-floor safe will very likely end up as a more expensive and short lived option than its certified counterpart, the susceptibility of an under-floor safe to attack is such that; 

• No under-floor safe has an insurance rating.
• No under-floor safe has ever passed accredited European testing.
• No under-floor safe has been certified to European standards for burglary resistance.
• Most insurers will not cover an underfloor safe except perhaps for very minor amounts. 

The Economic Reality Of Under-Floor Safe Sales In Ireland

It should not come as a surprise that most under-floor safes are very cheaply manufactured and have a low level of resistance to attack. The practical reason for this is the profit being made by installers of under-floor safes is primarily derived from the substantial amount of physical labour involved in fitting. Physical labour being an expensive component, if an underfloor safe was manufactured to the same quality as even the lightest certified safe, the overall cost of having an under-floor safe installed would be highly exorbitant. The result of this economic reality is that most under-floor safe doors and bodies have an exceptionally low level of construction and attack resistance when compared to even the lowest grade of floor mounted certified safe. 

The Concrete Around An Under-Floor Safe Is Almost Entirely Irrelevant

The main selling point of an under-floor safe is the idea that it is buried in concrete. A fact that is almost entirely irrelevant as successful attacks on under-floor safes will usually involve an attack on the under-floor safe’s door, which, when compared to a certified safe that has been tested and certified for burglary resistance, is very easily defeated. This is something most burglars are well aware of. In addition, the low position of an under-floor safe door combined with the lack of anti-drill protection makes it far more easily drilled open when compared to a vertically positioned certified safe with multiple re-lockers and anti-drill plates that has been anchored to European standards. (50kN / 5.08 tons of anchoring force)

• Below is a selection of better than average underfloor safes doors that have been drilled open. No attack was made on the concrete around the safe. An average of 4 holes was enough to open each one. 

Only A Qualified Builder Should Install An Under-Floor Safe

The under-floor safe installation business has always been an extremely attractive opportunity for criminals and fraudsters. Even today there are well known suppliers of under-floor safes advertising in the media, on the internet or at exhibitions, who have associated with criminals or served time in jail. Even if this were not the case, we would always recommend that when buying an under-floor safe or any other type of safe, you do a quick check into the background, credentials, and experience of who you may be buying from or divulging information to. When it comes to having an under-floor safe installed, letting anyone other than a qualified builder interfere with the floors of a home or business is definitely not an idea that should be entertained. The consequences of letting an unqualified person break into a floor and breach the damp-proof course (DPC) of a building can have long term consequences for rising damp and even slow flooding depending on location. This is quite apart from the fact that elements like concrete mix, correct concrete re-enforcement and avoiding buried obstacles such as water pipes or buried electricity cables are best handled by a qualified professional

The Well-Known Corrosion Problem

Adding to the lack of security inherent in under-floor safes is the temperature differential between the inside and the outside of an under-floor safe body, due to the fact an underfloor safe is beneath a floor. This temperature differential is a well-known problem in the safe industry and will cause condensation on the safe door, the door being the highest point of the safe. Over time this will cause rust and it is the reason an under-floor safe will come with either a mechanical key lock or a mechanical combination lock. For an under-floor safe it is advised locks will need regular maintenance and it should be noted that mechanical lock types, both key and combination, have been shown to be easily defeated with manipulation attacks. 

The Electronics And Alarm Monitoring Problem

Unfortunately, an under-floor safe can almost never successfully be fitted with electronics as the issue of condensation precludes the reliable function of electronic locks or monitoring. For the professional burglar this means the discovery of an under-floor safe is also an indication of a complete lack of electronic countermeasures such as seismic sensor or monitoring to contend with, while drilling the door open should be a fairly quick and easy process as no underfloor safe has ever passed European testing and certification against burglary attack, even at the lowest level.

The Final Analysis 

Qualified builders in general will do an excellent job of fitting an under-floor safe, but it is far more common that lower paid and less skilled installers who will disregard concrete mix, reinforcement and resealing damp courses end up being involved in this kind of work. There have been occasions when water pipes have been broken, electrical cables interfered with during installations, as well as issues with rising damp and slow flooding accumulating well after an under-floor safe installation due to incompetent fitting. In the final analysis you would have to question the value of an underfloor safe, even if it has been professionally installed when the result is storage that is less secure, difficult to access, more expensive and has no insurance rating.