18 Reasons Why “YES” and 6 Reasons Why “NO”
Gun safes are a great investment for storing your guns. But there are many reasons to own a gun safe and a few reasons not to own one.
While a gun safe ensures the safety of your kids, house members, and neighborhood and makes you a good citizen, here are some important reasons why you must OWN a gun safe.
Reasons To Own A Gun Safe
I’ve summarized some of the most crucial reasons for buying a gun safe. You may never have thought they really matter.
1. Protects Your Firearms From Theft
Probably the most obvious reason is to ensure the protection of your firearm from theft. There are a number of reported cases in which burglars/intruders steal guns from homes and use them in various criminal activities.
Other than that, your firearm, while being a source of protection, is also a valuable investment and you can’t afford to lose it. Especially if you have a collection of guns, it would be pretty sad.
A gun safe is not merely a case. It has advanced features such as biometrics, solid steel construction and a secure locking system. These are unbreakable boxes of metal and thieves cannot steal anything inside it.
2. Keeps The Gun Out Of Your Children’s Reach
Just because of poorly stored guns at home, there are hundreds of thousands of cases in which children are killed. As a caring parent, your first priority must be the security of your children. You must prohibit them from accessing your firearms and the only way is through a gun safe.
Kids are naughty and they sneak into every corner of the house. Even if you think you’ve hidden the gun in the most secure place in the house, it is still a risky option.
A gun safe not only keeps the firearm secure but also eliminates all the possible chances of your children or any other house member gaining access to the weapon.
3. Protection From Fire
You never know about accidents. As you store your cash in the bank to protect it from robbers, you must consider your gun as a valuable possession and ensure its protection from destructive incidents like fire.
Always prefer a gun safe with good fire rating and multiple layers of insulation to prevent any damage. Some of the best gun safes, especially those offered by Winchester have fire resistance as much as 1800 degrees Fahrenheit.
You can check out this article where I’ve shared reviews of four best large gun safes with the highest fire rating and insulation capabilities.
4. Quick Access To Your Firearms
Hiding your gun somewhere in the house and then reaching it in case of an emergency can be risky. You never know when a thief breaks into your house. Leaping to find your gun is not the way to deal with such circumstances. You must have quick access to your weapon.
This is where gun safes come to the rescue. Since you have your gun securely locked inside the safe and only you can access it, the safe can be placed anywhere in the house. Most of the gun safes can be opened in split seconds. Simply enter the security code or verify biometric to gain access.
Some people who own a gun safe can access their weapon faster in case of an emergency compared to those who don’t.
5. Protecting Valuable Items
While gun safes are made for guns, you can also store other valuable items like important documents, cash, jewelry, and keys. It protects them from theft and fire.
Even the smallest gun safes have enough space left to store additional items. Most commonly people store their gold, silver, financial assets, bonds, stock certificates, passports, photos, birth certificates, tax records, and jewelry.
6. To Comply With Child Access Prevention Laws
Multiple laws have been created to prevent access to guns by kids. The Child Access Prevention Law is one of them. As per this law, “Gun owners are bound to keep their firearms in safe and secure places such as gun safes so children cannot access them.”
Well, it not only prevents your children from accessing your weapons, it also protects other children visiting your house.
Just make sure your kid isn’t sneaking on you when you unlock it.
7. For Protection of Firearm Ownership Rights
You can actually be sued for poor handling of guns. It gets even worse in the event of an accident. Having your gun properly locked inside a gun safe not only makes you a good citizen but a responsible gun owner as well.
You must try your best to avoid getting caught up in state laws just because of poor safety habits. A gun safe is usually a long-term investment and it’s worth it.
8. A Requirement By Insurance Company
Most of the insurance companies have made it a requirement to store your gun in a gun safe in order to be fully covered. While you can place them in any locker, it’s always better to secure it in a certified safe, especially one that comes with an alarm.
When you provide the insurance companies with a safe certification, they enable fast recovery of losses in case of theft or damage.
9. To Avoid the Lawsuits
If a thief or intruder steals your firearm and engages in a criminal activity, a lawsuit may be filed against you. You’ll be completely unaware of what’s happening with your gun and the authorities may come after you.
However, a gun safe can keep you safe from such unwanted circumstances. Since the safe is drilled to the floor or wall and it is virtually impossible for the thief to break it, you’ll be completely safe from any false lawsuits.
It also shows to the law that if you own a gun, you’ve also taken the responsibility for its proper safety.
10. Complying With Firearm Locking Device laws
Majority of the states in the USA requires you to lock your gun in a safe place. The best way to do so is buying a certified gun safe and storing your gun in it.
Even if there are no kids in your house, you must comply with firearm locking device laws for the maximum security of the people around you.
11. You Can Get an Insurance Discount
Well, this might be surprising but you can actually get a discount for having a gun safe. Call your insurance company or check with your agent if any discount is available. Most commonly, discounts are given for truly safe, security measure, fire-rated safe and a simple gun safe.
However, it isn’t obvious and you should check before buying a gun safe. The requirements can exceed your average gun safe. Don’t spend a hell lot of money on a gun safe that doesn’t get you an insurance discount.
12. Protection from Lawyers
A gun safe can probably offer protection in insurance claim dispute and legal circumstances. While it is virtually impossible for a thief to rob the gun, even if he is able to do so, you can always explain to the lawmakers that you took the necessary security measures.
In roughly 1 out of every 13 forced entry burglaries, there is someone who breaks into your house with no proof of damage. Depending on the laws in your state, police might say there’s no proof of unlawful entry and that you had your guns properly locked if any such case happens.
13. They Look Attractive
While gun safes are a safety equipment and aren’t meant to decorate your house, they actually look good mounted on the floor or the wall.
Nearly all the gun safes include pre-drilled holes that can be used to mount them easily. Usually, gun safes are painted with glittering lacquer and a shiny plated hardware that appears attractive.
14. Carrying in a Concealed Way
In the USA, different states have various laws – for example, how a firearm can be left in a vehicle changes from state to state. They can question where you are allowed to park on with a gun inside your car. Even if you have all the legal requirements when you carry a concealed weapon there is still a risk.
However, with a portable gun safe, you can always carry it anywhere since you are following the rules properly.
15. Tax Rebate
Multiple states in the USA offer tax credit if you purchase a gun safe.
States like New Jersey, Washington, Massachusetts, Michigan and Connecticut offer exemption from sales tax.
Similar, a few cities like Northglenn, CO’s rebate offer incentives for purchasing a gun safe.
Moreover, you can get a write-off if you keep tax documents and business papers in the fire-rated safe.
Similarly, a gun safe for an Florida will also be a write-off. It is better to consult your accountant before you buy one.
16. Makes You A Good & Responsible Citizen
As mentioned earlier, owning a gun safe shows that you are a good and responsible citizen who is well aware of how to keep firearms safe from children and intruders.
It’s not only an investment in a metal box but also in your personal character.
17. Protect Your Rights
Yes! Gun safes protect your rights. The anti-gun political groups say that guns are harmful in anyone’s tactile hands. They are a threat to public safety and to eliminate the threat, all the guns must be removed.
Moreover, these groups also say that even law-abiding gun owners are irresponsible and even evil.
To further add fuel to fire, these groups push their messages whenever any accident or tragedy happens which involves guns, especially the ones that are not protected.
In order to protect your rights, you must own a gun safe and refrain from becoming a target of such anti-gun groups.
18. An Investment Worth It!
Above all the reasons, an investment in a gun safe is long term and is worth it. It offers the best protection against unauthorized use, theft, and fire.
You can store all the valuable items along with your gun inside the safe and be worry free all day long.
Reasons Not To Own A Gun Safe
While owning a gun safe may not have any drawbacks but here are a few reasons to be fair.
1. You May Not Be As Protected As You Think
Hey, wait!… I thought gun safes are meant for better protection.
Suppose, you are on a camping trip or a holiday and you’ve recently bought a gun safe that is resting inside your house with your gun and other valuable possessions. A few weeks later, you come home and see the safe on the floor, pried open.
Your firearm, hard earned savings, jewelry and other valuable items are gone. Some professional thieves nowadays use a pry bar and curb pin to break into gun safes, especially the ones which are easily breakable.
Or, you just came back from a camping trip with your kids but you see that shiny metal box all pried open with nothing left behind.
These scenarios are sad and depressing.
Even if you plan to build your own gun safe with a thick sheet of steel and concrete base fire lining, the costs rise quickly and it can get expensive.
Initially, some of the gun safe companies, in order to cut down the cost, reduced the steel thickness in half and used lighter fireproofing. Most of the people were happy with the price reductions.
However, in a couple of years, the industry got more competitive. A few companies thought to make their safes highly secure to top the competition. Unfortunately, they made them less secure.
In the gun safe industry, the quote “You get what you pay for” doesn’t work. You may get some cool features like a shiny lacquer with chrome plating, beautiful interior and overall appearance of the safe. But what’s the benefit if it breaks just with a pry bar or an axe?
So, think before you buy one.
2. Expensive
While a few gun safes come under $500 most of them are way more expensive. Buying one can hit your wallet hard.
All the hard earned money saved in your bank will be invested on something low in excitement per dollar.
While it protects your gun and other valuable items, the safe just sits there mounted on the wall or floor. It only moves when you want to take it with you or move to a new place.
Moreover, they may not offer the best bang for buck protection-wise. There are chances if you don’t have the right information you may invest in a wrong product and regret it later. Also, I’ve seen most of the gun safe owners hardening their exterior doors.
Another thing is a fireproof gun safe, which is a lower priority than ABC fire extinguishers for furnace room, garage or room with fireplace.
Lastly, if you are expecting a normal gun safe to be very durable, think again and read incidents where gun owners found their safes pried open. Gun safe companies charge way too much while durability is always a doubt.
3. Very Difficult To Move
Most of the gun safes are way too big and extremely heavy. They can be as heavy as 950 lbs. and it becomes impossible for you to move it. Much worse, most of the gun safe companies offer to ship to your door and not inside the house. You will have to invest in a professional moving service that will add extra cost.
Even if you have a partner or friend to move it, selecting a place for your safe is still a headache. You can probably damage your newly bought equipment.
The normal weight range for most of the big safe is 300 lbs. to 980 lbs. While moving the safe is difficult, it can also damage your tiled floor or painted walls. A skilled team charges a lot.
You may want to shift to a new house or move the safe to the upper portion. Its weight is always a big challenge to deal with. One has to think of every scenario before investing.
There have been few incidents when safe owners tried to move it and injured their back. You either need help or have to invest in a moving service.
4. You May Not Be Able To Modify Your House
To properly install a gun safe, it is necessary to mount it on the wall or in the floor so that robbers can’t take it. But if you are renting a house or want to do any modifications, it can be a difficult task. Drilling holes to mount it and un-drilling them again can be a big hassle.
Some minor modifications like building a short wall to enclose the exposed side of gun safe can cost you some serious bucks. Firstly, you’ll need a professional to un-drill it and move it to the desired place, plus the added cost of building the wall and again drilling your safe back into its location.
5. Gun Safes Shrink
Really…?
Well, not apparently but if you are a gun collector, your collection will grow over time and the safe you’ve bought a few months ago will shrink. It can be painful to invest thousands of dollars in a big gun safe and then bearing all the costs of installing it.
Just imagine that you are a curious gun collector, a year from now, it will be hard to stomach the new cost. Moreover, selling your old safe won’t win you a lottery.
In addition to that, the cost of steel, advancing technology and other materials is increasing day by day. A safe that costs $1,000 today won’t be available at the same price tag a year later.
6. You Have To Hide It
Your gun safe is an expensive investment with a lacquer coating and nice shiny chrome plating with an attractive locking technology. Having it on the display of your house can make any burglar greedy.
You must have a place where you can hide it from the sight of intruders.
With these ‘YES’ and ‘NO’ reasons to own a gun safe, I hope you will be able to access your decision more accurately.
