The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued revised instructions on the management of lockers to all banks in accordance with an order of the Supreme Court in August. The revised directive will take effect on January 1, 2022
The Reserve Bank of India stated that it is recommended that banks formulate their own policy/operation guidelines approved by the board of directors in consideration of the revised instructions. “The revised directive will take effect on January 1, 2022 (unless otherwise specified) and will apply to new and old safe deposit boxes and bank storage facilities.”
In order to facilitate customers to make an informed choice, the bank should allocate lockers in the core banking system or any other compliance with RBI and ensure the transparency of locker allocation.
The central bank stated that if the lockers cannot be allocated, the bank should confirm receipt of all applications for the allocation of lockers and provide customers with a waiting list number.
In February, Supreme Court Justices Mohan M Shatanagoudar and Vineet Saran asked the Reserve Bank of India to formulate uniform rules for the management of lockers for all banks within six months.
The Supreme Court has stated that opening lockers without following legal procedures will be interpreted as a serious negligence by the bank, adding that banks should not be free to impose unilateral and unfair terms on consumers.
For the sake of clarity, the Reserve Bank of India may also issue appropriate rules regarding the bank’s liability for any loss or damage to the contents of the lockers.
“In our opinion, the current regulations are inadequate and confusing. Each bank follows its own set of procedures,” the court said.
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