The Restaurant Doctor

STOW ME THE MONEY <ap.terry-shogun@worldnet.att.net>

We are independent operators in a medium-size southern city. We have two locations and my husband travels back and forth between the two stores regularly. In the past two years, we have been broken into at one location three times, the other location once, and my husband held up at gunpoint once at one location. My question is..... what have most of your independent operators found to be the best way of making the deposits of sales at the end of the evening? My husband is very reluctant (afraid) to take a bag of cash to the night deposit of a bank at 1 o'clock in the morning (alone). And we are also very reluctant to have our employees (or ourselves) take large amounts in cash to their houses overnight. We have left cash in the restaurant overnight in the past, and were robbed. I know the larger chains have the Brinks truck come around on a regular schedule and pick up the sales. What do you hear from the other independents as to the best way to handle the money at the end of the night? Holiday weekends are especially bad because we have unusually large amounts of money at our house sometimes for three days because the banks are not open on Monday.

If you have any advice or any of your readers have any suggestions, we would surely appreciate hearing them. At this point, we live in an extremely modest house, have absolutely no valuables that would be worth stealing, yet my husband is intent on getting a guard dog to keep in our house in case the bad guys follow him home from the restaurant at night. His paranoia is beginning to worry me.

From David Gillie:
There are a couple things they could do to handle that money: Check with an armored car company, I was surprised at how affordable it is, $160 a month for every other day pick up. Plus they bring me the heavy change orders from the bank. They can provide you with signs and information on safes. Use a heavy duty drop safe and leave it there all nite. If he does use a nite depository again, tuck the bag under his arm and have a closing employee follow him, or if he's a good relation with the police they will tag along sometimes. Buy an extra robbery insurance rider, it is a bit expensive and has limits, but much better than being paranoid and the wear & tear on your nerves.

From Carol Pinsonneault:
We have a hidden safe built into the restaurant kitchen, with a combination for the safe that only the owner knows. The staff drops the money and receipts into the safe and it is safe, for days, until you decide to go to the bank, which we do a varied times during the day, not at night, when the crooks are out. We live far away from the restaurant but we have a security alarm on the house and a dog in the back as well.

From Chuck Hunt:
Regarding the night deposit problem. It's been a while since I had the problem, but in Portchester, NY, some years ago, we used to call the local police who would escort us to the night deposit. In respect to burglaries at home, we don't have an alarm, we have two (very sweet) dogs, a terrier and a Doberman. If anything happens at or near our house, the terrier makes so much noise that he wakes up the Doberman. The Doberman (who is actually very docile) has such a reputation that her bark and appearance is likely to scare off any intruder.

From Dave Ostrander:
I'm also an independent operator in a small town in northern Michigan. In the past twenty five years we've done all of the above in dealing with night deposits. I offer these suggestions. I do not recommend or allow cash to go home with employees or owners. You are inviting crime to follow you to your home. Reducing the risk for burglary and hold up is a multi step process. I'll deal with each issue separately.

Burglary prevention:
· Put a decal on all doors that no cash is left overnight on premises. All cash over $ 50 is in a safe, employees can not open it.
· Install a security system. Door and motion detectors.
· The majority of B&Es are the result of employees tipping friends where the petty cash is kept. They also know your buildings weak points for forcible entry.
· Buy a serious safe, with a drop slot for periodic cash drops. Floor safes are the best. They are impossible to force open or carry off.

Robbery Protection, The decal and the safe statement usually discourages would be robbers.
· Video Surveillance Camera System, either real or dummy is quite a deterrent.
· Don't keep visible large amounts of cash in cash register drawers. Drop all large bills on the hour. Cash is an invitation to robbers. It cries out steal me!

Night deposit procedures:
· The best and simplest system is ask your local police department for an escort to the bank night depository. The patrol car will follow you and wait until the deposit is completed. They will most likely need thirty minutes advance notice in case they are on a complaint. Do I smell doughnuts?
· The other plan that I personally use is a two vehicle money drop. The cash person pulls up to the wall and waits until the escort car ( another closing employee) stops and aims their high beams on the car 100 feet away. The escort flashes his/her lights and the money is dropped. Much more security especially with a cell phone.

Other tips:
· Never make money drops in a paper envelope. They often tear and the contents spill out into the safe. Occasionally the money gets wedged in the guts of the safe requiring a service call to the bank. From experience, not a way to endear yourself to the bank. They get real cranky.
· The money is not federally insured in the night depository until it touches the hand of a bank teller usually the next morning. It is simply a convience for depositors. Always close the door completely, listen for the bag to drop to the bottom, and re-open the drop door and peer inside to make sure that it didn't hang up. A large five battery mag lite flashlight helps a lot and is a great security builder.
· Invite your local Police Department Command Officers for a walk through and a business lunch while you discuss security issues. Host the lunch and invite other restauranteurs. They also share similar concerns and it's a great time to get to know each other. Also after they give their suggestions be sure to publicly thank them. A small ad in your local newspaper will never be forgotten. We all crave positive press.

From Martin Hershey:
You need a floor safe, one installed in the concrete, with a good top. There is no point trying to save money and buy a cheap one, they can be broken into. I would only make deposits during daylight hours...the police will escort you if asked.

From Tom Martin:
Our local (Clovis, NM) police dept. is happy to escort us to the bank. We have not done it often, but each time we have asked, they have obliged.

From Gary Fontaine:
I have had the same problem with money. I have been lucky enough not to get robbed but I did not like having that much money around. What I did was quite simple I put in a drop safe it is bolted down and no one has the combination except me my staff drop all of there night deposits there and I always put the last float in also. I have told my staff that no one except the security service has the combo and once the money goes in it is in until they pick it up. In this case I am that service but they do not know that. My cost was about $500 installed an it would take a lot of work for someone to get it out. Using this I feel safer. By the way you can get a safe installed that only the security company can open but you pay a monthly fee. In your case it might be worth it.

From Bill Moore:
There are several options. Your concerns and your husband's worries are all legitimate.
1). Start with your bank. They have an investment in your ability to safely do business with them.
2). Look into night deposits made after a certain hour. Lock bags are usually free and smaller deposits can be made as the day progresses.
3). Check with local law enforcement. Does your single safe and pattern of deposits lend itself to past employee break-ins?
4). Talk to your insurance agent. They have to pay claims above the deductable so they have an interest in helping solve the problem.
5). No insurance agent to keep costs down?

Try your local Restaurant Association. Whey out the costs and add in the value of the life that might be saved.

From Scott DeGross:
A floor safe is an inexpensive way to leave your money on location until daylight hours. We are independent with three locations in western Wisconsin. We have been in business for 14, 10, & 5 years; have been broken into 3 times and have only lost loose change(in an open till drawer -- let them have $10 but don't lose a cash drawer), and we lost a stereo and TV. Daytime banking is much safer.

From David Wright:
We operate a catering operation near Exeter in Devon, UK. Our cash handling procedure is very simple. We have a safe with a cash rating higher than the amount we are likely to collect even on a bank holiday weekend, then get the money collected by a security firm. All this costs of course but so does getting robbed.

From Jeffrey Moss:
I am also ane independent restauranteur in the NE USA. We have a Gardall safe bolted to the slab in the basement, which is in a locked office. Deposits are made 2x a week, during the daytime. We do leave money in the building overnite, and despite being broken into twice, our safe has protected our assets.

My first recommendation is that you install a professional security system, complete with central station monitoring, panic buttons near the safe/office and front door, as well as motion detectors, glass break detectors, magnetic door switches, and both audible and inaudible alarms. We also have a CCTV surveillance system which we find quite useful as a tool to keep us in touch with all activity centers in the restaurant simultaneously. Security systems today are very advanced, and can be customized to any operators' needs and budget.

My second recommendation would be to install a "drop" style safe, bolted to the concrete, with a timer that would limit access to all personnel except a specifically designated bookkeeper/owner. Our deposits are made during daytime hours (we walk to the bank), but at varying times, so we remain unpredictable. Sometimes I take another person with me, just for peace of mind.

There is no single solution to your problem-good security practices evolve over time; usually as a response to an incident such as yours. Think of your restaurant's security in layers--you want to put as many different layers of security as possible between your money and thieves (secure doors, windows, roof, locks, safes, etc.) Keep your doors locked as soon as the last customer leaves, don't open them until you're ready, and keep a sharp eye out for the unusual.

From Matt Wisener:
In response to the question raised about cash handling at night I have a few suggestions. It sounds like this operator has a reputation; that is that crooks know these locations have money and are an easy target. Armored car expenses are high, but so is losing a day's receipts and the change fund. And, no amount of money is worth gambling your life for. I would start with greater security measures and one of my favorite is the video observation systems available. Point a camera at each door, including the office. It's pretty important that you let your crew know that this is for their safety, not so you may spy on them during working hours. A well-lit parking lot is also important, as is good relations with your neighboring businesses and police force. Select your employees carefully and never disclose how much money you make or keep on hand. More robberies than you think are facilitated by employees, intentionally or not. Train your employees to protect your business the same way that they serve safe food. If you must make drops to the bank, do so during daylight hours. Don't go alone, always take someone with you, alter your routes and set a time when you will be back. You may still have to secure money in your safe, but the amount will be lower. Although the company I work for has armored services, we've been robbed too. The trick is to be aware and take no chances when dealing with physical plant security. Taking cash home with you is never a good idea and I'm sure your bank or whoever is doing your financing would be none too happy if they heard about that strategy. If you've been robbed in the past, think of ways that you could have avoided it at that time and learn. Your mistakes are one of the only things you can truly call your own. Take care and be safe.

From Karen Cooley:
We, too, have a medium sized restaurant in a Southern town of 140,000. We were also concerned about of our cash and our staff. We installed a security system on our perimeter (doors and windows), with motion detectors and glass break sensors. The same company that monitors this system monitors our fire alarm which saves a little money. We keep our back door locked and as it gets late lock all other doors in the building and key employees out as they leave the building or need to empty garbage. Our money is kept in a safe in an office that is located well away from the back door. We wait until the morning to do daily paperwork and make our bank deposits. By delaying this paperwork until morning, our managers are able to leave the building at the same time as our dishwashers and kitchen crew. I know that no system is foolproof, but this system has kept us incident free for 8 years. Hope this helps!

From Becky Schoeneck:
I once knew someone who had to take large sums of money home and she lived in an apartment. She had plenty of door locks, but she also had a chair next to her door which had a can of Easy Off oven cleaner sitting on it. Should anyone had ever been successful at getting through, the Easy Off would have given her a means of quickly disabling a person's eyesight (albeit perhaps permanently). She felt she would hear them in time to get to the door. The apartment was small and the path to the door was kept clear. Maybe no one ever suspected anyone in those apartments had any money to begin with, but as far as we ever knew, she never had any problems.She sometimes had in excess of a million dollars in her house. This may not solve any problems in itself, but I've often thought of just carrying a can of oven cleaner in the car with me. Perhaps walking out to the car with oven cleaner in their hand would work for the people in your message. Messing with a person's eyesight may seem cruel, but so is stealing from people. If the robbers have a gun and they can't see, at least they won't know where to shoot. ln any case, you would need the element of surprise on your side. Having oven cleaner in a restaurant would be quite natural anyway.

for more information contact:
Bill Marvin, The Restaurant Doctor
EFFORTLESS, INC.
PO Box 280 - Gig Harbor, WA 98335 USA
(800) 767-1055 - (253) 858-9255

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