This Blog was written by: Holly Allardyce
I once attended a networking event where we all had to name an aspect of our jobs that we enjoy. I volunteered that I liked knowing I had located all of a deceased person’s valuables. The perplexed facilitator asked if I was a professional burglar.
I advised that I was a Trust Officer that when attending at a residence shortly after a client’s death, I always checked certain locations for cash, important documents and other valuables, including filing cabinets, in-home safes and dresser drawers.
In addition to these standard places, there are other, more creative spots to store one’s treasured possessions, such as:
- Air vents.
- Fake wall art that conceals shelving.
- Fake books. My mom has one of these and she gave me one as a present. This faux leather bound “book” does not blend very well with my dog-eared paperback novels.
- An old appliance such as a T.V. or vacuum cleaner. There was a story out of Barrie, Ontario in the media last week, where $100,000 was discovered inside an old T.V. at an Ontario recycling plant.
- Stash safes. My favorite is a fake head of iceberg lettuce. This unique depository is kept in the fridge and is available online for USD$99
While these ruses are likely used to thwart potential thieves, they may be overlooked. Please remember where you hid your valuables and to advise your executors and attorneys if you employ any of these special hiding places.
2 Comments
Jill Bone
February 23, 2017 - 9:15 pmI am the same way – as a Trust Officer I’m not “happy” until I’ve found your jar of change.
A story around our family was that a younger friend of ours used to go see a friend of the family in the nursing home. The staff advised that he had been going to the bank, but they hadn’t found any extra cash around. They keep an eye out, but when the gent passed there was no obvious stash. The friend went to open the curtain and noticed something didn’t feel right. The weight in the corner of the fabric was odd – turns out the gent had been unstitching the curtain hem and sewing $100 bills inside. I now check the hems of the curtains…….
Joanne Hetherington
February 24, 2017 - 3:49 pmLOL Holly! While I do not work at an E&T Branch, I am a Scotiatrust Employee I find great joy when I find something someone has hidden. My mom has Alzheimer’s and she used to hid things all over the place. My dad would get frustrated & I would just shake my head & laugh… it became a challenge to find where things were put. Money, jewelry, household items etc. I always found a funny, joy, in that a-ha moment when I found what I was looking for. Thanks for sharing!