There are no laws that limit what you can and cannot put in a safe deposit box. The only restriction may be in the financial institution's contract or lease when a person rents a box.
What should you store in a safe deposit box? About 5% to 10% of the boxes at Florida's unclaimed property division of the state's Banking and Finance department contain substantial cash--$5,000 or more.
The most common items stored in safe deposit boxes are jewelry and important papers--originals of birth, marriage, and death certificates; deeds; vehicle titles; stock certificates; bonds; valuable collectibles; and insurance photos of the contents of a home.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. says to store items in a safe deposit box that would cause you to be in big trouble if you lost. Don't store things you would need in an emergency such as a will, a living will, or originals of a power of attorney authorization.
If you're concerned about losing safe deposit contents due to fire, theft, or flood--which is rare, but does happen--you might want to consider insuring some items such as jewelry or coins.
People often make an inventory of valuable items in their house to store in a safe deposit box. Jean Salvatore of the Insurance Information Institute in New York recommends making an inventory of what's in a safe deposit box and keeping it in the house.