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Home >> Safe Deposit Boxes
Renting a Safe Deposit Box Under an Assumed Name
I prefer not to go into my reasons, but I wanted to rent a safe deposit box at my bank but I didn't want it to be in my name. My bank refused to let me rent a box under a made-up name. What is the big deal? Why wouldn't they let me do this?
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 Actually, there are several reasons. We'll start with the most interesting one. Most states have what we refer to as a "W.C. Fields" law on their books. Yes, that W.C. Fields. It seems W.C. had a hard life as a youngster, beginning work when he was ten, hawking fruits and vegetables on the street for his father. He ran away from home while still just a boy and tried to earn a living as a juggler. He spent a bit of time homeless and living in wretched conditions, and those early days of poverty left deep scars on his psyche.
As an adult, W.C. found fame and fortune, but held on to a lifelong fear that he would go broke. That fear took on new urgency when a friend was robbed while they were in San Francisco. Fearing he, too, would have his money seized by criminals, W.C. found a bank, rented a safe deposit box, and stashed his cash. Doing so must have provided some comfort to him, because he reportedly began tucking money in safe deposit boxes around the globe. By some estimates, Fields opened between two hundred and seven hundred different bank accounts or safe deposit boxes. Unfortunately, he usually used a name other than his own to do so. Phony names like "Elmer Mergatroid-Haines" were given to the banks, and despite his attempts at recordkeeping, it is believed many of his secret stashes of cash were never discovered and went unclaimed by his relatives.
Because of the problems that arise when a safe deposit box is held under a fictious name, as illustrated by W.C.'s boxes, many states passed legislation prohibiting the rental of boxes under an assumed name. In addition, the USA PATRIOT Act, passed on the federal level in late 2001, requires each financial institution to obtain identifying information on every new customer (including safe deposit box renters) and to verify that identity.
Besides the legal impediments to renting a box to an individual using a fictious name, there are practical problems as well. When an individual seeks to enter his box, his identity should be verified. This is often done by showing identification. In your case, your driver's license or state ID wouldn't match the name of the box renter and, unless you have fake IDs (which will get you into trouble under other laws!), you couldn't confirm your identity under the fake name.
Published on BankingQuestions.com 7/28/06
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