Kan Dail
Being a robbery victim can have lasting effects on a person’s financial and mental state. In the last few years, there has been a tremendous rise in the number of robbery-related cases in homes and banks. While homeowners can upgrade their security by installing intelligent devices, businesses and banks must follow a similar path.
To better prepare for a bank robbery, the best thing one can do is think like a thief. Thinking like a thief goes way above and beyond installing security cameras. It includes hiring armed guards and using dye packs or bait money.
Since robbery can make one feel unsafe or traumatize them, whether customer or employee, it is essential to take measures to prevent it at all costs. Every institution must follow a few tricks to keep robbery prevention at the top of its priority list. If you’re here eager to learn the various steps to avoid becoming the next robbery target, you’re at the right place. So, let’s get started.
1. Prioritize Customer Service
The first step towards better and more reliable theft prevention is emphasizing customer service. You must ask all the employees to greet each other with a smile while making direct eye contact. It will make the customers feel secure by making them feel in the company of the friendly and helpful staff.
2. But how can it help detect robbers?
Thieves don’t want to get noticed until they are all set to rob. So, they will most likely avoid making eye contact with the staff members at the entrance and at the counter. If the staff notices such unusual behavior, they must alert the other employees using a handy device. Thus, friendly services can be a valuable deterrent to identify suspicious people during the entry to address the issue before it becomes a huge deal.
3. Upgrade the Security System
Installing a better security system is the most obvious way to enhance workplace safety. Although it involves heavy investment, it is only a one-time following in which you can take a sigh of relief and save huge sums by avoiding future thefts. So, if you haven’t already installed a security camera in prominent corners of the bank, do so as soon as possible.
However, installing cameras is not helpful unless you have a person monitoring it round-the-clock. So, ask one of your staff or hire someone to keep an eye on the cameras and inform the staff of any suspicious customers. Hiring armed security guards from uss.co to watch over the lobby 24/7 and handle the occasional crowd is also helpful.
4. Keep Your Employees Safe
To keep the bank staff members safe, calm, and focused all the time, even in an emergency, you must invest in various gadgets. These gadgets include bulletproof workstations, panels, and windows. You may also consider investing in transaction drawers that reduce direct contact with the customers while letting the staff exchange goods and money with them.
Installing these devices allows the staff to focus on their work or make intelligent decisions even when the bank is robbed. It is so because when they know the robber cannot hurt them, they’ll continue doing their jobs without fear. So, always prioritize your staff’s safety and invest in these devices ASAP.
5. Reduce Cash Dependence
What would a thief rob if a bank does not have any cash or gold to offer? You must be thinking, how can a bank still operate if it reduces its cash dependence? Well, it is possible to employ technology to eliminate cash dependence.
We understand that in the banking sector, handling cash transactions is inevitable. But, in order to avoid theft, a branch may install cash recyclers or dispensers. These devices automate many processes and limit the amount of cash one can access at a time, thus limiting the damage a thief can inflict on the branch.
Reducing the cash dependence of a branch is probably the best way to limit the damages, as most of the time, robberies are inevitable.
6. Never Share Personal Data
Sharing the personal information of your fellow employees or customers is the first step toward exposing them to potential risk. Sometimes, we share data without even knowing that someone is overhearing us. It may be in the form of a friendly conversation. During such instances, we exchange personal details that the savvy crook often uses for mischievous purposes.
So, teach your staff the perils of exchanging data with fellow employees and customers. You may also ask all of them to sign the non-disclosure agreement. Doing so will help prevent potential thefts from occurring.
7. Prepare an Action Plan
Creating a plan of action means preparing for an unfortunate event in order to reduce its impact. It is a helpful trick because when you know how an incident may turn out or what to do when it occurs, you can handle the situation in a better way. It also gives you confidence by helping you prepare yourself for it.
So, ask your employees to share their ideas about the various ways to prevent bank robberies. Considering all the suggestions, you can prepare a clear action plan to reduce the impact of an attempted robber on the financial and mental state of the bank and staff. You may also take suggestions from the security personnel. Such tips include the following:
- Comply with a thief in a calm and composed manner.
- Note down any specific details about them.
- Get in touch with the police right after the incident.
Parting Words
We hope this blog helps you avoid or better handle potential robberies at your branch. Although following these tricks will assist you, don’t forget that technology is your best ally in security. The smartest thing you can do to handle such unfortunate incidents better is to install systems to handle cash transactions and streamline the exchange process.
It will help reduce the risk to a great extent and allow the staff to focus more on providing better customer service.