navigatormoney :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
• Pick a cotenant with
care “You may want to give
someone access to a box in
case you become disabled,”
says McGuinn,“but you
don’t want a child with a
drug problem to use it as a
personal treasury.”
• Pay the box rent If you
don’t, the state may seize
the contents as unclaimed
property. —Ian Coburn
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The Short Answer
Not-So-Safe Deposits
Worth It?
Q: Are the contents
of my safe-deposit
box at the bank
really secure?
A: A safe-deposit box is
certainly a better place
than a shoebox for storing
important documents and
valuables, but it’s not im-
penetrable. “Safe-deposit
boxes are loss-resistant,
not loss-proof,” says David
McGuinn, president of Safe
Deposit Specialists, which
sells boxes and trains bank-
ers in their use. And the
contents aren’t
insured unless
you cover them
in your home-
owner’s or
renter’s policy
(the Federal
Deposit Insur-
ance Corpora-
tion insures
only money
in bank ac-
counts). Some
easy ways to protect the
contents of your box:
• Go for the vault Though
self-service boxes are easy
to access, some even 24
hours a day, they’re by
definition not as secure as
those in a bank vault.
THE
PRODUCT
The Rolling Razor
$14.95; set of four re-
placement cartridges,
$7.95; free shipping
available (310-827-
3555; rollingrazor.com).
$32.9
The value,
in billions, of
property
abandoned in
safe-deposit
boxes or
otherwise
unclaimed
THE CLAIM
It’s a whole new way
to get a close shave: a
razor you slip onto one
finger, like a ring, for
better control.
• Seal your stuff Boxes
can get flooded, so pack
whatever you store in
watertight plastic bags.
• Create a cyber-backup
Banks and online vendors
offer “virtual safe-deposit
boxes,” where digital copies of documents can be
stored. If you’re computer-savvy, your own website
can do the job, too.
THE TES T
Moving my wrist back
and forth in a rocking motion—not the
straight swipes of a
conventional razor—
was easy, and stubble
vanished without lots
of pressure. In four
months I haven’t cut
myself once.
STATIS TICS SOURCES: NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF UNCLAIMED PROPERT Y ADMINISTRATORS; MOEBS SERVICES
THE VERDICT
It won me over. A tester
with arthritic hands
liked this easy-to-grip
razor, too. —Frank Yuvancic
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CLOCK WISE, FROM TOP LEF T: PE TER HOE Y; COURTES Y OF ROLLING RAZOR; CHRIS TOPH NIEMANN.
The battle for your dollar never
ends. That’s why Remar Sutton isn’t
rejoicing over a new law that caps credit card fees. Sutton, founder
of FoolProof, an online financial-education program, notes that
banks are upping fees for overdrafts, which have grown along with debit
card use. “It’s the job of banks to nickel-and-dime you,” he observes, “and
there are no limits on checking account fees.” —Audrey Goodson
Rising Bank Fees
$26
The median
overdraft fee, up
from $25 last year.
The biggest banks
charge $33, on
average.
