You have purchased the most secure vehicle safe on the market. It therefore makes sense to use a matching quality of vehicle safe installation.
Installing your Pangolin safe is not difficult, but guaranteeing that you will not lose your competency (in case of a firearm safe) if something goes wrong is another matter entirely (e.g. your vehicle is stolen with your gun in the safe). Follow these 3 steps to counter this risk:
The evidential record includes the Certificate of Installation plus comprehensive proof of a compliant installation.
You as the safe owner can of course choose to install your safe as you wish (and this is a natural and easy process for most laptop safe installations).
Pangolin does not install safes, but as the manufacturer we know how firearm safes should be installed in order to be secure and to comply with the FCA, FCR and SANS standard. Certified installers (see below) are trained in these requirements, giving owners the peace of mind with a secure and compliant installation.
Most vehicles have multiple possible mounting locations. The installer will consult with you to decide where to mount the safe. When doing so, be mindful of the requirements of SANS 953-1: "When a safe is installed in a vehicle it shall be affixed non-conspicuously to the floor or body of the vehicle, ...". Due to its low profile and dark colour the Pangolin H safe is naturally inconspicuous, but can be rendered more so by placing carpeting over it or mounting it fully or partially under a seat.
These locations have been used in various vehicles (plus a few others with the safe mounted on its side or upside down, see photos throughout our website):
Compliance with SANS 953-1 for type B3 safes (temporary storage of firearms in motor vehicles and caravans) requires that a certificate of installation be completed by a third party safe installer for retention by the firearm owner. A blank certificate for this purpose is supplied with your Pangolin firearm safe.
Certificate
Installers are required to complete your certificate of installation. It is not a requirement for installers to keep a copy of the certificate, but they may do so with your agreement.
Keep the original in a safe place (but not in the Pangolin) and supply copies to those in need of it (e.g. insurance company, employer, etc). It would also be wise to keep a copy on your mobile phone.
The FCA, FCR and SANS standard do not require an inspection or any other form of validation of the installation (or certificate) by SAPS or anyone else. Any attempt to obtain one is inadvisable since it would only cause confusion.
Time to install varies from less than an hour to more than two, depending on the vehicle and where you choose to install it. Most installers require you to bring your vehicle to their workshops, but mobile installers will come to you.
Evidential Record
Certified installers offer the creation of an evidential record of the installation, with free cloud storage. This proof of compliance is recommended by Pangolin's legal advisers. The record can only be created and stored if you authorise it by signing a POPI consent form.
Register with Pangolin
Please register the handgun safe and keys with Pangolin. Should you lose both keys to your Pangolin vehicle firearm safe, Pangolin Security Products will have to verify the legitimate owner of the safe before supplying replacement keys. The registration is purely for authentication purposes to maintain the security of your safe.
Your Pangolin safe is supplied with an installation kit that includes stainless steel Nyloc nuts and bolts of the correct length for passing through typical vehicle carpeting and floor pan. If the ideal mounting location requires bolting onto a closed box section then it is highly recommended that Plusnuts are used (since this is more secure than long bolts and conventional nuts). Bolts that are too long pose a security risk so are not supplied as standard. IMPORTANT: Rivnuts are not acceptable.
The safe must be secured with all four bolts in the holes provided for the purpose.
Please also see the ultra-secure Strike-It! bolt and nut closures available from Certified Installers below.
Rust Protection
It is a requirement that exposed metal and fasteners on the underside of the vehicle are treated and coated by the installer to prevent rust.
Pangolin's certified installers have received specialist training in vehicle firearm safe installation and associated legal requirements to ensure competence in:
For the highest levels of legal compliance and assurance we recommend Pangolin Certified Installers.
Please see our certified installers below (* Mobile installers will come to you for installation):
EASTERN CAPE
FREE STATE
GAUTENG
KWA-ZULU NATAL
LIMPOPO
MPUMALANGA
NORTHERN CAPE
NORTHWEST
WESTERN CAPE
If you don't find a convenient installer in this list, please contact us. We want to know where the needs are so we can build up the Pangolin installer network to fill any gaps.
Pangolin Strike-It! Security bolt and nut closures for ultra-secure installations adds an extra layer of security to Pangolin vehicle safe installations where bolts or nuts will remain exposed.
This is an optional value-add available from Certified Pangolin Installers that you can request when you book your installation.
The Strike-It! security closure makes removal of a safe impossible with conventional hand tools. When you want to uninstall the safe, an angle grinder will be required to remove the security bolt.
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