In recent weeks, there have been media reports covering break-ins that have occured at homes where keys have been stored in a lock box outside of property.
Naturally, this has raised the question about whether using a lock box, or a key safe as we call them, is safe.
The short answer is yes, as long as you have the right one.
The important thing to remember, is not all key safes are equal and I would urge anyone who has a key safe, or is thinking of getting one, to take extra care in ensuring that the key safe they choose meets the required security and attack standards.
Like most things there are 'good', and 'not so good products' on the market; but there are those that stand above the rest and are best in their class.
Any product with ‘police preferred’ status, such as the ones within our 'polcie preferred key safe range' is independently tested so you can be sure that they are stronger and more reliable than other products on the market, not least because of their incredibly high security standards. Let me run through some of the reasons why.
Police preferred
We have several devices that have 'police preferred' status, which is an accreditation from Secured By Design, the official police security initiative supporting products created to prevent crime: these devices are tested by the Building Research Establishment (BRE).
Each key safe in our police preferred range has achieved the same security standard as a domestic front door. We always place safety and security first when designing our products.
The LPCB (Loss Prevention Certification Board) works with the international security industry as well as insurers to set security standards. Key safes with an LPCB certification have been vigorously tested to make sure they are secure, perform effectively and defeat an attack by a burglar.
The standard which deals with key safe security is called ‘LPS1175’.
There are different levels of security offered by this standard. We recommend that you opt for products with a minimum LPS1175 ‘A5’ standard or above.
All of the key safes in our police preferred range have attained A5 certification, or higher.
Our ark Tamo is the first mechanical key safe to be A10 certified giving it the highest security rating for a push-button key safe, closely followed by our Supra C500 Pro and Supra P500 Pro key safes, which both hold the A5 certification.
Unique tech
The ark Tamo features unique, patented multi-push technology allowing each button to be pressed up to four times. This means that, unlike any other push-button key safe on the market, you can have repeating digits in your code, offering more than 9.7 million code combinations. It really is the ultimate in code security.
Attack testing
Our key safes are regularly attack tested to prove their resilience under physical attack using a range of tools.
We’re so confident in the robustness of our products that we often hold attack testing demonstrations at public events. Our next attack test display will be held at the International Security Expo (ISE) at Olympia in London this September.
If you choose a police preferred key safe from The Key Safe Company, you can be sure it is as secure as your own front door!
Still have questions? To discuss our key safes and security ratings further, give our friendly UK based team a call on 0330 363 0303.
Marcus Taylor
Managing Director at The Key Safe Company