How safe are bank locker contents if banks fail

[VadheraHalli]

It's an old thread, but wanted to alert readers out there..

Make SURE the locker has proper nomination if the holder passes away it will be a nightmare to get the bank to open it. It has taken us over 4 years of running pillar to post, from bank legal teams, RBI, court probate proceedings and over Rs1Lac to even to open the locker just for valuation purposes. Indian bank protocols border on the most unethical practices I have come across.

[Veekay]

It's an old thread, but wanted to alert readers out there..

Make SURE the locker has proper nomination if the holder passes away it will be a nightmare to get the bank to open it. It has taken us over 4 years of running pillar to post, from bank legal teams, RBI, court probate proceedings and over Rs1Lac to even to open the locker just for valuation purposes. Indian bank protocols border on the most unethical practices I have come across.

In the absence of such nomination, the best thing to do is to stop rent payment for the locker. With the demand for lockers in India the bank manager will have no choice, but to break open it in front of the renter. If the renter is no longer alive, he's got to inform their legal heirs. This moves the onus on the bank manager (which is usually at most an year). This should usually start to happen when the locker rent is due next.

Of course this assumes that the savings account and other FD (lien) accounts at the bank have been closed or has less funds than the locker rent.