Bank of America, which has about 2,000 safe-deposit boxes at three Houston-area branches closed due to flooding, said it is providing information to customers about restoration and replacement services.Ĭollectively, these four banks - largest in the Houston area in terms of deposits - reported that 32 branches in the Harvey-affected area remain closed due to storm damage.Some examples of things you can and should keep in a safe deposit box (opens in new tab) include prized possessions such as collectible baseball cards or jewelry inherited from a relative, for example. and BBVA Compass did not disclose how many safe-deposit boxes were damaged, but each bank said it is allowing affected customers to collect their belongings. Nationally, the average rent for a 3-inch-by-5-inch box is about $50 a year, according to BBVA Compass. Rent for a Chase box typically runs $45 to $165 a year, depending on the size. It's also reimbursing customers for the cost of replacing passports, birth certificates and such documents.Ĭhase and BBVA Compass are also waiving safe-deposit box fees. The banking giant offered ultrasonic machines and cleaning solutions to help customers salvage coins and jewelry, free of charge. "But it's harder to get into a safe-deposit box at a bank than a safe at home."Ībout 400 of Chase's 80,000 safe-deposit boxes in the Houston area flooded. "I don't have that much confidence in them anymore," said the woman, whose home was spared from flooding. The woman, who asked not to be identified because of the nature of her items, said she plans to rent a box at another bank for her valuables. A Kingwood woman who had the appointment following Rogers' reported that floodwaters had soiled her husband's mint-condition coin collection held at a nearby Chase bank. Things not to keep in a safe-deposit box: An original "power of attorney," passports, identification cards and other items that might be needed in an emergency.Ĭhase, largest Houston-area bank by depositsĪrea branches: 348 in disaster area from Corpus Christi to San AntonioĪrea branches: 156 branches in South TexasĬlosed after Harvey: 7 branches See More Collapse savings bonds and other items that do not require immediate access and would be costly, difficult or impossible to replace. She placed the items in her black SUV to take to another bank branch.Īppropriate items for a safe-deposit box: Property deeds, car titles, U.S. She emerged with a green shopping cart loaded down with documents and other possessions. Rogers drove to temporary collection site Wednesday afternoon to find her items undamaged. That included folks like Rogers, who kept a box at a westside Chase branch that was inundated with water from the overflowing Addicks reservoir. Customers could make appointments to retrieve their belongings. To accommodate affected customers, Chase physically removed thousands of safe-deposit boxes and transported them - via a fleet of armored cars guarded by security officers - to a nondescript building north of Houston. Customers have been directed elsewhere, and temporary mobile banking units have set up shop in the parking lot of several branches. The storm's epic rainfall flooded hundreds of safe-deposit boxes while also causing enough damage to shut down more than 30 local bank branches across the Houston area. "I never thought of floods."īut like so much else Houstonians took for granted, that all changed when Hurricane Harvey came to town. "I thought I could keep them safe if my house burned down," Rogers, the Copperfield mother said last week. Tiffany Rogers rented a safe-deposit box nearly a decade ago, and has paid $250 each year since to store her family's birth certificates, passports and other possessions inside a 15-by-17-inch metal box in the vault of a Bear Creek-area Chase bank. Paul Takahashi / Houston Chronicle Show More Show Less The Friendswood resident has been storing documents, such as real estate agreements and car titles, inside a safe-deposit box since 1967 and doesn't plan to change after Harvey flooded thousands of boxes. Houston Chronicle/Houston Chronicle photo illustration Show More Show Less 2 of2 Ben Hodges, 70, collects his safe-deposit box belongings from a Chase collection center north of Houston after his bank branch was flooded during Hurricane Harvey. Chase moved safety deposit boxes from that branch and eight others that were closed by flooding to a location on Interstate 45 North, where customers went to retrieve their items. 1 of2 This safety deposit box came from Chase's Clear Lake City Boulevard branch, which was flooded by Hurricane Harvey.
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