Keysafes for the Elderly: What, How, and Why?

Until the invention of the keysafe there were only a few choices for people who cared for elderly relatives who needed other people to have access to their homes. One option was to have their own key, which worked perfectly for them, but didn’t allow others to get in in an emergency. Another option was to leave a spare key hidden under the mat or another obvious place, which worked but is obviously not a very security-conscious plan.

So the keysafe was the best solution. Keysafes are a small, secure and simple safe letting you store a spare key outside the property. Most keysafes are Police-approved and are very strong. So what are your options when you want to buy one?

Keysafes for the elderly – where and how to fit

Like with most of our safes – they’re only as safe as the fitting. A poorly-fitted safe is easy to lift and take away and although a keysafe is never left anywhere without being fitted (unlike a home safe) it still needs fitting correctly.

A small keysafe must be fitted to a wall (not a shed door or fence) and you should always use the wall plugs in the fitting kit. It’s best to drill the holes into the brickwork as bricks create a stronger housing than the mortar in between them.

Choose a position that’s out of sight if you can. Nothing screams “vulnerable elderly person lives here” more than a keysafe outside the front door near the doorbell! Fit your keysafe to the side of the porch or better still down a side alley out of sight.

How safe are keysafes?

Good keysafes are constructed from a robust metal and some even come with a rubber weather cover to protect it from years of damage from rain, sleet and snow.

A 4 – 6-digit security code has from 10,000 to over 13,500 for a 6-digit combination. It would take a long time to work out the code!

Even if a keysafe was prised from the wall it would be very difficult to break into the safe too. Because of the compact and robust construction it would need specialist tools to break into once removed and 99% or burglars wouldn’t bother!

Why choose a keysafe?

The most secure way to keep a spare key is with someone else away from the property. Often a neighbour is enlisted to hold a spare key and this is fine until they’re not in. If you’re away and your elderly relative needs help and your trusted neighbour is out then you have no way of gaining access.

But with a keysafe you can share the code with someone else and allow them simple access. You can even change the number regularly (here’s how to change the code on a keysafe). So, if you only want to allow access to someone in the most urgent of situations then do so and change the code after.

Keysafes offer peace of mind and far better security than a key under the mat. For a small cost you can have police-approved key storage and allow access to a home with a simple code. You can of course have a door handle with keycodes on but the simple keysafe is far simpler to fit and cheaper too.

Be secure and have a safe option for your elderly relative. Key safes for the elderly start from around £20 and one of the most popular ones is the Phoenix Keystore.

For more advice on choosing the right keysafe for you or your elderly friends and relatives, contact All About Safes.