Protecting Your Profits:  

Minimize Your Risk for Internal and External Theft 

By IVA Staff 

Unfortunately, vending machines continue to be frequent targets of theft. Thieves know that vending machines sit in one place 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, filling up with cash while their owners are nowhere to be seen. 

There is nothing that you can do to completely eliminate the risk of theft in your business. Dishonest people will always be waiting to take advantage of another person's hard work. While you can't change human nature, there are plenty of things you can do to minimize your risks of theft and vandalism. 

First of all, when you are placing your machines, consider the safety of the location very carefully. Place your machines in high visibility locations whenever possible, where they will be in plain sight of a receptionist or store clerk. An experienced thief might not be deterred by this, but it could prevent a lot of casual vandalism. Some thieves have worn clothing printed with a "Vending Service" logo to a location, picked the machine's lock, and cleaned out the cash, telling the employees they are just "fixing the bill acceptor." Make sure your contacts know that only you or the route driver (whom you should introduce to them) will be servicing their machine.  

If you have route drivers, do what you can to minimize the temptation of open cash. Use a locking collection box system (there are several on the market) and have an established route accountability procedure in place so that your employees know that the routes' cash is being monitored. You may also want to use different keys and locks for each route. 

Remember, if you are uncertain about a location's safety, don't risk it. Vandalism and theft are expensive burdens for a small business to bear. 

© Independent Vendors Association 

December 2006, IVA Bulletin 

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