Vending machines are a popular and convenient way to provide a variety of snacks and beverages to an office, work place, school or community building. No longer are vending machines offering the basic candies and chips, but now you will often see vending machines equipped with a minimum of 50% healthy snack options, and can provide both hot and cold drinks. However, is there safety or security risks to consider when deciding to install a vending machine?

What are the risks?

Modern machines have come a long way in terms of safety and security from where this equipment began, but there is still safety risks associated with vending machines. Most documented cases of dangerous situations occurred when a person was attempting to steal from the machine or acting out physically due to the frustration from a malfunction in the equipment. Certain physical pressure on a vending machine can cause the machine to fall over, crushing anything in its path.

Most modern vending machines are extremely heavy. This is because of the safe-like design used to ensure that the money in the machine is secure and safe from theft. A full pop machine can weigh over 800 pounds. These machines also risk falling over because of their abnormally high centre of gravity, making the machine more susceptible to toppling over. Often times business owners will put surveillance cameras in view of a vending machine to make sure nobody is acting out on a machine and to discourage people from trying to steal or vandalise the vending machine.

Coin Fraud

Most commonly found in older vending machines, foreign currency or even worthless tokens are sometimes used by customers to provide a worthless payment for their item. This was more common in the past because many modern machines now take bills which are much more difficult to use interchangeably between currencies and counterfeit bills or other pieces of paper will not be easily read by the machine.

Food Safety

Not only should one always check the expiration dates on any snack item you receive from a vending machine, but it is also important that the temperature of the machine is reasonable, depending on what types of food and drink are being stored. If your item should feel cold and it is warm or room temperature, then it may not be safe for consumption. Modern vending machines should have a visible thermometer if it carries snacks with a shelf life that depends on the climate they are kept in. However, there are many snacks that this does not apply to. Lastly, always make sure that all food vended from the machine is sealed in its original packaging to ensure that your snack has not been tampered with in any way.

With Regional Vending, we frequently service your vending machines so you will never have to worry about food safety and tampering.  With over 40 years experience, our knowledgeable staff will be able to tell if there is coin fraud or other risks, and will address the issues immediately.