FM 505
Date of issue: 15 September 2000

CANCELLATION OF PREVIOUS FM

4.    Cash payments should be limited to the payment of wages and salaries to casual staff and individuals with reserved rights; small imprests and advances; and small miscellaneous purchases where other methods would not be economical.

5.    However, where the collection of cash is unavoidable, the health and safety of staff in the office environment must be of primary consideration when formulating policies for the storage and movement of cash. (Para 45 of PPARC’s Management Statement and Financial Memorandum refers.)

LOCAL POLICE ADVICE

7.    General advice on the transport of money and valuables by vehicle or on foot, compiled in consultation with the Wiltshire Constabulary, can be found at the Annex to this FM. Whilst this advice may be used by the Establishments as a guide, local police advice should always be given precedence.

USE OF SPECIALIST CASH TRANSIT SERVICES

• removal of the risk of attack on employees;
• saving in employees' time;
• certainty of delivery of cash even if successful attack is carried out;
• the standard of security afforded is greater than any of PPARC’s Establishments can reasonably be expected to provide themselves.

(a)    the Establishment is unable to reduce the cash carrying requirement and is satisfied that the amount to be carried justifies special arrangements which cannot be provided in-house; or

(b)    the local police advise that, having regard to the arrangements available at the Establishment for safeguarding staff and cash, the risk to either the staff or the cash is significant.

ADVICE TO STAFF

12.    It should be noted that whilst this FM is based on detailed guidance provided by the police, it has been worded so as to maintain a balance between the ideal and the operational reality and should therefore be applied with discretion.

QUERIES

Rachel Preston
Financial Accountant
Accounts Team
PPARC Finance Division

3.    Secrecy regarding the movement of cash is essential and knowledge of such movement must be restricted to the minimum number of persons necessary for its safe handling. Details of cash movement should only be communicated at the last moment. Close attention should be paid to security precautions within the premises.

4.    The person responsible for planning cash movements should be familiar with the routes to be followed. Special note should be made of obviously vulnerable spots, the availability of telephones and places where refuge or assistance can be sought. Briefing sessions should be held to ensure that all persons involved in cash-carrying operations are fully aware of the parts they play and are reminded of the need for vigilance. Staff required to perform these duties should first study this advice.

5.    The times of collection and deposit of cash and the routes should be varied as much as possible, bearing in mind that a reasonably busy route is generally safer and should be used in preference to a quiet alternative. Try to restrict cash movement to daylight hours.

6.    A motor vehicle should be used whenever possible, even for short journeys.

7.    Wherever possible official vehicles should be used. If, however, an employee's own vehicle is used, it should be noted that in no circumstances will PPARC accept responsibility for repairs to a vehicle which has been damaged whilst on a journey on behalf of PPARC.

8.    The person conveying the cash should be escorted; the escort should be appropriate to the sum in transit and the distance to be travelled.

9.    If possible, before leaving the premises, staff carrying cash should take time to observe their route and surroundings, looking out for anything or anyone suspicious, if necessary delaying departure until they are happy.

10.    A particular lookout should be kept at points of collection and delivery for persons loitering or for occupied stationary vehicles, especially in adjacent side turnings. It is better to stop the collection or, if on route, to take refuge if there is the slightest suspicion.

11.    The fear of raising a false alarm should not deter any person from contacting the police if suspicions are aroused.

12.    New employees, whose references have not been authenticated, should never be used for the transport or handling of money.

13.     Staff should remove identifiers (such as name badges) which tie them to PPARC, thus advertising they are on official business.

15.    Staff should inform someone remaining at the office of their intended route and an estimated time of return so that if the staff fail to return the alarm can be raised.

By Vehicle

17.    Advantage can be gained by varying the vehicles used but only if the alternative vehicles are equally secure against attack. The use of a taxi is not to be recommended for carrying cash.

18.    A vehicle which is to be regularly used for the transport of money should:

(a)    be maintained in good mechanical condition;

(b)    be fitted with additional security door fastenings;

(c)    be fitted with an immobiliser;

(d)    be fitted with a distinctive alarm operated from an internal switch;

(e)    be fitted with an internal mirror for the observer;

(f)    be checked for fuel etc before each journey.

(a)    a vehicle safe secured to a frame integrated with the chassis. The most convenient place for a safe is usually in the boot of the car and, by fitting additional locks, good security is obtained. Safe keys should not be carried in the vehicle;

(b)    ring bolts, welded to the chassis, through which may be threaded hardened steel chain secured to the cash container;

(c)    an alarm bag;

(d)    additional, weighted, decoy containers.

(a)    the driver to remain in the vehicle at all times, with doors locked and, when stationary, with the immobiliser set;

(b)    the driver to be informed of the route only when the money and personnel are safely inside the vehicle with the doors locked;

(c)    the person in charge should decide the route immediately prior to departure;

(d)    routes should be timed and, in the event of non-arrival at destination within an agreed tolerance period, enquiries should be started to trace the vehicle;

(e)    an escort should be provided and its strength will depend upon the amount of money to be moved. At least two able-bodied persons in addition to the driver are recommended. Each should be allotted a specific duty during loading and unloading and, in the event of an attack. Only trusted employees should be used;

(f)    ideally, a separate vehicle should be used for transporting the escort. If such a vehicle is used, it should always travel at a convenient distance behind the cash-carrying vehicle. When the cash carrying vehicle is stationary at its destination, the escort vehicle should be parked so that the cash carrying vehicle and the route between it and the destination of the cash are constantly in view. The escort should remain at the wheel;

(g)    routes should be reviewed whenever possible. To provide greater variation, it is often possible to arrange for transactions to be carried out at different branches of banks.

22.    A careful watch should be kept on vehicles preceding or following during the journey.

23.    Impersonation of police officers must also be borne in mind. In the event that any vehicle engaged in the movement of cash is stopped by someone in police uniform the driver should, without alighting from the vehicle or opening the window more than necessary to allow speech, offer to drive to the local police station.

On Foot

(a)    elderly or infirm persons should not be used due to their vulnerability;

(b)    the person carrying the cash should, whenever possible, walk facing oncoming traffic in order to reduce the risk of a surprise attack from behind from a vehicle;

(c)    in pedestrian areas and footways, the person carrying the cash should keep on the inside towards any fixed boundaries, again to reduce the chance of being caught by surprise. A watch should be kept for people loitering in shop doorways etc.

(d)    any escort should walk a few yards behind the person carrying the money so as to be in a position to warn of an intended attack, or to raise the alarm if an attack is made, and should have the means of raising the alarm eg an electronic alarm or whistle;

(e)    there is often an advantage to be gained by carrying small amounts of cash on the person rather than in a bag or case. Alternatively, notes only may be carried on the person and the coin in a bag or case. The use of cash carrying garments and alarm bags or cases should be considered, preferably the style that is fitted with an alarm and/or smoke or dye protection. However, the practice of fastening cash-cases to the body has been the subject of controversy. It prevents the surprise snatch, but there is a risk of injury to employees. Where this method is used, the bag or case should be fastened to a harness or to a waist strap and not to the wrist, so that the hands remain free.

(f)    consideration should be given to a policy of dividing the risk by using two or more persons for the conveyance of money;

(g)    too regular a system is to be avoided. Times and routes should be varied whenever possible and, where the choice lies between a reasonably busy route and a quiet route, the busy one should be used. Routes should be changed only where there is an advantage to be gained.

(h)    special care is needed in the use of a night safe and money should never be exposed to view until the night safe door is opened;

(i)    it is of the utmost importance that all persons engaged in the transit of cash, either as carriers or escorts, should be observant and should exercise vigilance at all times during the operation. Action should be taken to avoid any circumstances or situations where there is the possibility of delay or hindrance. For example, crowds or groups of people should be avoided and a route should not be followed slavishly if there is any suspicion of danger;

(j)    the first and last hundred yards or so of any journey when cash is carried are the most likely places for an attack and it is during these parts of the journey that special vigilance should be exercised.

(a)     it is the duty of all staff engaged in the conveyance of cash to take all reasonable steps to safeguard official money but, in event of an actual attack, staff should not take any action which might invite or result in personal injury. Staff should co-operate with the robbers’ demands to ensure their own safety and concentrate on obtaining details of the robbers’ descriptions;

(b)     every effort should be made to note the description of the attacker(s) with particular reference to physique, scars, colour of hair and eyes, age, height and dialect. Clothing can very quickly be changed and is unreliable as identification but physical peculiarities can prove particularly useful. The registration number and description of any vehicle used, together with the escape route or direction of travel when last seen, will also be of assistance.

(c)     the alarm should be raised as soon as practicable by an emergency call to the police and, if it is safe to do so, at least one person should remain at the scene of the attack to await the arrival of the police.

Last updated: 29 June 2001