What is a police preferred key safe?
How does a key safe become police preferred? Why is choosing a key safe with police preferred specification so important?
A key safe is designed to make it easier to provide controlled access to a property without needing to be there in person. They are used by homeowners, families, carers, emergency services, tradespeople, holiday-let owners and many other people who need a secure way to share a key.
But because a key safe is usually installed outside a property, its security matters. This is where Police Preferred Specification comes in.
Police Preferred Specification provides a recognised way of identifying security products that have met defined security requirements and undergone the relevant assessment. For consumers, this provides something particularly important: evidence of security performance, rather than simply a manufacturer's claim that a product is secure.
What is a Police Preferred key safe?
A Police Preferred key safe is a key safe that has met the requirements of the Police Preferred Specification, part of Secured by Design (SBD), the official police security initiative. Police Preferred Specification is one of the most widely recognised security accreditations for products designed to help protect homes and buildings. Products that achieve the specification have demonstrated resistance to criminal attack through the relevant testing and assessment.
For consumers, this provides an important distinction. There are many key sharing devices and key boxes on the market, but they don't all offer the same level of security or have been independently tested against physical attack.
Police Preferred Specification isn't a marketing description. It is a recognised security specification that requires the relevant product to meet defined requirements and undergo assessment/testing.
A product may look strong, or be described as "high security" or "hammer-proof", but these descriptions alone don't tell you how well the finished product will withstand attempts to gain unauthorised access. The relevant security assessment considers the product as a whole, including aspects such as its construction, locking mechanism, materials and design, and how it performs against defined methods of attack.
In simple terms, Police Preferred gives consumers a recognised security benchmark when comparing key safes. It means the product has demonstrated that it meets the relevant requirements of the Police Preferred Specification.
If you're choosing a key safe for your home, it's therefore worth looking beyond appearance or marketing claims and checking whether the product has been independently assessed and certified against recognised security requirements.
How does a key safe become Police Preferred?
A key safe cannot simply claim Police Preferred status because it is made from strong materials or has a robust design. To achieve Police Preferred Specification, the product must meet the relevant requirements of the Secured by Design scheme and undergo the appropriate security testing and assessment.
The testing is designed to establish how well the key safe can resist attempts to gain unauthorised access. The construction of the product, its locking mechanism, materials and overall design all contribute to its security performance.
This independent assessment is important because it provides evidence of how a product performs when subjected to physical attack. For a consumer, that is much more useful than simply being told that a key safe is “strong” or “secure”.
The Key Safe Company's Police Preferred range have been tested by the Loss Prevention Certification Board (LPCB) to LPS1175 Issue 8 standards.
Why is independent testing important?
Independent testing of key safes is important because it provides objective evidence that a key safe can withstand the types of attack it is designed to resist.
A key safe can look robust without necessarily being difficult to attack. Independent security testing provides an objective way of assessing the security performance of the finished product. Rather than relying solely on a manufacturer's own description of how strong or secure a product is, testing assesses it against defined requirements to verify security claims and provide confidence when choosing a product. This distinction matters when choosing a key safe.
At The Key Safe Company, we believe that security should be demonstrated, not simply claimed. We were the first company to introduce a Police Preferred key safe, and our products have continued to evolve as security requirements and customer needs have changed.
Our Police Preferred range has been developed with resistance to physical attack at the heart of the design. Depending on the product, this can include protection against picking, drilling, sawing, tampering and forced entry.
For consumers, independent assessment provides something a product description cannot: evidence of how the product performs when subjected to defined security requirements.
Are Police Preferred key safes trusted?
Yes - Policed Preferred key safes can provide a high level of confidence due to the independent assessments against recognised crime-prevention requirements.
Trusted by over 3 million users in the UK alone, our police preferred key safes are widely used to share keys in all manner of uses, including Airbnb, rented accommodation, void properties and enabling carer access into vulnerable people’s homes. They can help families, carers and professionals provide access without needing to exchange physical keys or leave them in insecure hiding places.
Our products have been independently tested and developed to withstand criminal physical impact while remaining practical and easy to use.
To maintain the relevant Police Preferred Specification, products must continue to meet the required standards. This means security isn't simply something that is only considered when a product is first developed; ongoing quality and manufacturing processes are also important. Our approach at The Key Safe Company is to design products that combine security, reliability and ease of use, while continually developing our range as customer needs and security requirements evolve.
At The Key Safe Company, we use an ISO-accredited manufacturing process and have quality controls in place to ensure products are manufactured consistently, reflecting our commitment to consistent quality.
Our approach is to design products that combine security, reliability and ease of use, while continually developing our range as customer needs and security requirements evolve.
What makes a Police Preferred key safe secure?
| Unaccredited key box | Police Preferred key safe | |
|---|---|---|
| Independent security testing | Untested, unaccredited | Tested against relevant requirements |
| Resistance to attack | Limited | Security performance independently assessed |
| Recognised security specification | Not necessarily | Police Preferred Specification |
| Intended use | Convenient key storage | Secure key storage and controlled access |
Security doesn't come from a single feature. It comes from how the key safe is designed and how its different components work together to resist attempts at unauthorised access. The overall construction of a key safe can all contribute to its security performance, including the casing, locking mechanism, materials, fixings and protection around potential points of attack.
Depending on the design and level of security, features may be developed to help resist attacks such as picking, drilling and sawing, forced entry and tampering attempts, as well as attacks on the locking mechanism itself.
The level of protection will vary between key safes. This is why it's important to look beyond individual features and consider the overall security credentials of the specific product, including whether it has been independently tested against recognised security requirements.
For applications where a higher level of security is required, features such as reinforced construction, hardened components and anti-drill and anti-saw protection can provide additional resistance to physical attack.
Ultimately, the strength of a key safe is determined by how well the complete product performs against the methods of attack it has been designed and tested to withstand.
Which Police Preferred key safe is right for me?
The right key safe depends on where it will be installed, how it will be used and the level of security you require.
At The Key Safe Company, we offer a range of Police Preferred key safes to suit different security and access requirements. They have been rigorously tested and built using the most robust materials to offer optimum building security.
Maximum Security:
ark Tamo™ Maximum Security Key Safe
The ark Tamo sits within our maximum-security key safe range and combines Police Preferred Specification with independent security testing.
Its patented multi-push keypad allows each digit to be used up to four times, creating more than 9.7 million possible code combinations.
The ark Tamo also includes an anti-picking mechanism, coned anti-drill hinge pins and anti-saw reinforcement pins, alongside other security features designed to help resist physical attack.
ark Tamo™ Pro Maximum Security Key Safe
The ark Tamo Pro builds on the security of the Tamo with additional protection against physical attack. It combines the patented multi-push keypad with features including a stainless-steel vault lining, anti-pick protection, coned anti-drill hinge pins and anti-saw reinforcement pins.
The Original Police Preferred Key Safes:
C500 Pro Key Safe
The C500 Pro is the original Police Preferred key safe designed for secure everyday key storage. It provides 4,096 possible code combinations, unlimited code changes and an anti-pick mechanism.
P500 Pro Key Safe
The P500 features an anti-pick mechanism, anti-tamper protection and a stainless-steel interior vault.
What makes The Key Safe Company a leading supplier of Police Preferred key safes?
For more than 30 years, The Key Safe Company has specialised in the design and manufacture of key safes, leading the way in improving standards and security across the industry.
Our experience has shown us that security is about more than simply making a product look strong. It is about understanding how a product could be attacked, designing it to resist those threats, independently testing its performance and maintaining consistent manufacturing standards.
Our ark Tamo range has also achieved a King's Award for Enterprise in Innovation, recognising the patented multi-push key pad.
Our products are used across a wide range of applications, from providing access to family and carers in the home to supporting holiday-let, rental and commercial properties.
Frequently asked questions about police preferred key safes
Choose a Police Preferred key safe
If your key safe is going to provide access to your property, security should be a key consideration. Look for recognised accreditation, independent testing, robust construction and correct installation rather than relying on a product simply being described as secure.
Explore our range of Police Preferred key safes to find the right level of security for your property.
If you're unsure which key safe is right for your property, our friendly UK-based team is here to help. Call us on 0330 363 0303.
