Drop safes and German DGUV Regulation 25: the role of the opening delay

In any business that takes cash day in, day out – at the shop counter, in a restaurant or pub, on a forecourt or at a public-sector pay office – the cash on hand is more than an asset: it is also a robbery risk for the people working there. This is precisely the starting point of the German DGUV Vorschrift 25 "Überfallprävention" (robbery prevention): it obliges companies in Germany to organise their cash handling so that the incentive for robberies falls in a lasting way. One of its central building blocks is time-delayed access to stored banknotes – usually called an "opening delay" or "blocking period" in the safe world.

What is DGUV Vorschrift 25?

DGUV Vorschrift 25 "Überfallprävention" is an accident prevention regulation of the German statutory accident insurance (model version: August 2020). According to the DGUV, it replaces "the previous regulations 25 and 26 'Kassen' (cash desks) as well as regulation 20 'amusement arcades, casinos and slot-machine halls of casinos'" and comes into force "at the individual accident insurance institutions following a resolution of the respective assemblies of representatives and official announcement". Its scope is deliberately wide:

"(1) This accident prevention regulation applies to
a. credit, financial services and payment institutions,
b. gambling venues,
c. retail outlets, and
d. cash desks and pay offices of the public sector,
in which insured persons • handle cash, • handle other means of payment, or • have access to valuables."

Source: DGUV Vorschrift 25 "Überfallprävention", § 1 (1) (model regulation, August 2020), publikationen.dguv.de (translation; original in German: DGUV Vorschrift 25)

It therefore covers not only banks but explicitly also retail and wholesale businesses ("retail outlets") – in other words, a very large number of operations handling cash daily.

Storing banknotes: what § 12 actually demands

For everyday safe practice, the heart of the regulation is § 12 "Verwahrung von Banknoten" (storage of banknotes). It sets two requirements for the security container itself – resistance to forcible opening and protection against removal:

"(2) Security containers used to store banknotes must offer sufficient resistance to forcible opening and must be secured against simple removal."

Source: DGUV Vorschrift 25, § 12 (2) (translation; original in German: DGUV Vorschrift 25)

And – the decisive point for this topic – the obligation to apply a time delay:

"(3) For authorised persons who are regularly present on the premises, access to stored banknote holdings must be time-delayed. The time delays may only be capable of being changed by persons authorised to do so."

Source: DGUV Vorschrift 25, § 12 (3) (translation; original in German: DGUV Vorschrift 25)

The thinking behind it: if even the staff on site cannot get at the cash straight away, a robbery loses its appeal. On top of that, § 19 of the regulation requires businesses to point out access-preventing and time-delaying equipment at customer entrances and checkout workstations "permanently, clearly recognisably and in an easily understandable manner" (translation; original in German: DGUV Vorschrift 25) – the deterrent is meant to be visible to potential offenders.

At least 5 minutes: the blocking period under DGUV Regel 108-010

How long the time delay has to be is set out for retail in DGUV Regel 108-010 "Überfallprävention in Verkaufsstellen" (robbery prevention in retail outlets, April 2021):

"The blocking period or time delay for insured persons regularly present on the premises must, as a rule, be at least 5 minutes."

Source: DGUV Regel 108-010, section 3.3 (on § 12 DGUV Vorschrift 25) (translation; original in German: DGUV Regel 108-010)

The rule also spells out what the blocking period means: "For time-lock containers, the blocking period is the time that must be waited after entering the code until the lock releases access to the contents of the container." As one possible technical implementation it explicitly names "an electronic lock with a time-delay mechanism or an adjustable blocking period". On resistance to forcible opening it states: "Sufficient resistance to forcible opening is given if the time needed to access the contents is comparable to the set blocking period or time delay." (All quotes: translation; original in German: DGUV Regel 108-010.)

Securing accepted cash straight away: the drop principle

Alongside storage, the regulation also governs the moment immediately after cash is taken:

"(1) Banknotes accepted by insured persons must be secured immediately against access by unauthorised persons."

Source: DGUV Vorschrift 25, § 11 (1) (translation; original in German: DGUV Vorschrift 25)

For storage, DGUV Regel 108-010 mentions, among other things, "time-lock containers" and "deposit containers directly at the till" – and makes clear: "An unlocked simple drawer, such as a furniture drawer, is not suitable for accepting banknotes." (Translation; original in German: DGUV Regel 108-010.) That is exactly the principle a drop safe with a flap puts into practice: surplus notes are skimmed off and dropped in during normal trading, without the safe ever having to be opened.

Practical example: drop safe with drop flap (model 10424)

How these requirements can be implemented technically is shown by our drop safe with drop flap – VdS class 2 PIN code (model 10424). This safe is compliant with DGUV Vorschrift 25 and is therefore also suitable for areas of use in which this regulation is required for the secure storage of cash. The properties relevant to the regulation at a glance:

Time delay: The VdS-certified electronic combination lock (Tecnosicurezza EM 3550 with T6530/B keypad) offers a programmable opening delay of 1–99 minutes as well as an opening window of 1–19 minutes – so the minimum blocking period of 5 minutes named in DGUV Regel 108-010 can be set. Code management uses an admin code (owner) and separate user codes; in addition, a dual-code mode (opening under the four-eyes principle) and a silent alarm transmission option are provided.

Resistance to forcible opening and protection against removal: The body is built to security level B in accordance with VDMA guideline 24992, double-walled with a total wall thickness of 40 mm (3 mm outer wall, 1.5 mm inner wall) and a door made of 6 mm hardened steel; wall and floor anchoring including fixing material is possible – addressing the requirement of § 12 (2) to secure the container "against simple removal".

Dropping in without opening: Via the drop flap (drop opening 70 × 225 × 190 mm), takings, cash bags or keys can be dropped in at any time; an anti-retrieval device prevents deposited items from being taken out by unauthorised persons. With external dimensions of 450 × 280 × 300 mm, a volume of 28.35 litres and a weight of 31.4 kg, the model is designed for use directly in the checkout area; the contents can be insured for up to €10,000.

With its adjustable opening delay and the drop flap, model 10424 implements the requirements of § 11 and § 12 of DGUV Vorschrift 25. Which measures are required in an individual case follows from the company's risk assessment (§ 4 DGUV Vorschrift 25) and, where applicable, from the requirements of the competent accident insurance institution – this article does not replace legal advice or case-specific security consulting.

Conclusion

DGUV Vorschrift 25 makes time-delayed access to stored banknotes compulsory in Germany; DGUV Regel 108-010 specifies a blocking period of, as a rule, at least 5 minutes for retail outlets. A drop safe with a flap and a programmable opening delay – such as model 10424 from DiaDorn – brings both requirements together: immediate securing of accepted banknotes by dropping them in, and time-delayed removal via the electronic lock.

Sources

1. DGUV Vorschrift 25 "Überfallprävention" (model regulation, August 2020), DGUV publications database (in German): publikationen.dguv.de (PDF)
2. DGUV Regel 108-010 "Überfallprävention in Verkaufsstellen" (April 2021, in German): PDF
3. DGUV press release "Überfällen vorbeugen" (2021, in German): dguv.de
4. Product page DiaDorn model 10424 (retrieved 2026-06-12): diadorn.de