Most Indian families normally rent a bank locker, either individually or jointly. But what would you do if you one day find out that your bank had surrendered the locker years ago, continued to charge you annual rent, and even misplaced your items?
This happened with Delhi-based Ms Marwah, who found that the bank had already surrendered her locker, and jewellery worth approximately Rs 47 lakh was missing. The bank never informed the lady about the surrender; instead, it kept charging annual rent, according to her complaint.
Ms Marwah approached Delhi State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, seeking Rs 47 lakh compensation with 18% interest, along with an additional Rs 1.5 lakh as litigation costs, mental agony etc.
Locker surrendered by bank; jewellery worth Rs 47 lakh missing!
Ms Marwah had a joint locker in Union Bank of India with her father-in-law since 1998, which was operated by him in 2005. The father-in-law passed away on 29.08.2010, but the bank kept charging locker rent till 2013.
Years later, when Ms Marwah approached the bank on 01.09.2018 to operate and access the locker, she was informed that the locker was surrendered on 22.01.2015, but not to the bank.
Further, there was no notice given to the bank for locker surrender, nor was there any notice received by Ms Marwah that the locker had been allotted to someone else, she alleged. Meanwhile, the annual rent was being charged, and jewellery worth approx Rs 47 lakh went missing.
What did the bank say?
In its response to the Consumer Commission, Union Bank of India denied the contentions and submitted that the said locker was surrendered on 21.05.2005. The bank, however, acknowledged that the “fee debited for the locker was a bonafide mistake and that the Bank is liable to refund the said fee.”
On the missing jewellery, it stated that the question of items remaining in the locker does not arise as the locker had already been surrendered at the time of filing the complaint on 01.09.2018. It added that the bank only takes an empty locker after surrender, so it’s not possible that any belongings have been misappropriated.
ET Wealth Online reached out to Union Bank of India for a response regarding this case. However, the bank is yet to respond.
Can a bank close or surrender your locker without telling you?
No, a bank cannot quietly close or surrender your locker. RBI directions on safe deposit lockers require the bank to follow a set procedure and give prior notice before it terminates the agreement or opens a locker, said Amitraj Kaushal, Advocate at Supreme Court of India.
Also, surrender is a two-way act. It normally needs a written request from the customer and the return of the key with an acknowledgement. If rent is unpaid or the locker has not been used for a long time, the bank can act, but only after written notice and a documented process with independent witnesses.
“Silence from the customer is not consent. A surrender done without informing you can be challenged as deficiency in service,” he told ET Wealth Online.
What did the Delhi Consumer Commission rule?
First, the commission clarified that the case lies within its jurisdiction to adjudicate complaints where the value of goods or services and the compensation claimed exceeds Rs 20 lakh but does not go beyond Rs 1 crore.
“The value of the compensation claimed is well within the pecuniary jurisdiction of this Commission,” said Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal (President) and Ms Bimla Kumari, Member (Female).
The Commission found there was a deficiency in service by the bank. “We find that it was charging locker rent, and the same was also debited on 25.09.2018. Even if the mistake on the part of the bank was bonafide, it has also failed to place on record any receipt of surrender of the locker in question,” the bench said.
There was no receipt of the items in the locker provided by the bank at the time of the alleged surrender of the locker, hence, it is clear that the belongings of Ms Marwah were misappropriated, the commission found. With this, the Commission ordered Union Bank of India to:
-refund the entire amount of jewellery in the locker i.e. Rs 47 lakh with 6% simple interest from 01.09.2018 till 27.10.2026
-pay Rs 3 lakh as cost for mental agony and harassment plus Rs 50,000 litigation cost
What helped the lady win this case against the bank?
Perhaps the most important thing was that the bank could not prove its own case. It told her the locker was surrendered but produced no surrender receipt and no request from her. It also had no record of what the locker held. It even gave two different surrender dates with 2005 in its written defence and 2015 when she first approached the bank.
“Rent was still being debited from her account which shows the locker was live in the bank records. The Commission treated this as deficiency in service and held that the jewellery had been misappropriated by the bank,” explained Amritraj Kaushal.
Proof you must keep with respect to a bank locker
It is always stressed that you must keep the paperwork for everything, and rightly so! Kaushal advised that people should hold on to the locker agreement and every rent receipt. “Bank statements showing the rent debits were relied on by the Commission in this case so save them too.”
Moreover, visit the locker at least once a year and note down each visit. Take dated photographs of valuables before storing them and keep purchase bills or valuation papers at home and not in the locker.
If a joint holder passes away, inform the bank in writing and complete the formalities without delay. If you ever surrender the locker, insist on a signed surrender receipt with the date and check later that rent has stopped.
Is the bank responsible if locker items go missing?
Not automatically, but quite often yes. Banks usually say they only provide the space and do not know what is inside. That does not give them a free pass.
You must know that RBI directions require the bank to take reasonable care and cap its liability at 100 times the annual rent for events like fire, theft, robbery or building collapse. Yet this order shows that the full value can be awarded when the bank itself is found at fault.
