Tag Archive for: atm machine

New ATM Machine ADA Standards

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New ATM Machine ADA Standards

A new law affecting ATM machines has passed under the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) and went into effect on March 15, 2012. The new ATM machine ADA standards required full compliance by the deadline date of March 15, 2012.

If you are an ATM Operator, an ATM company or a retail merchant operating one or many ATM machines, these new requirements will affect every active terminal in your ATM portfolio or retail location.

Today I’m going to tell what you need to know about these upcoming changes and how it will impact your business.

Starting on March 15, 2012 customers with disabilities should find using an ATM easier than ever before. Regardless of whether you agree or disagree with this new ADA requirement your ATMs must be in compliance by March 15th.

Some ATM machines may require that you make enhancements to the way your customers physically access and interact with your ATM machines. Some of the new design standards and requirements include:

Height and Reach:
The reach requirement will change from a height of 54″ to 48″ to the top working button. This will help to ensure customers can easily access the input controls of the ATM. The exception to this change is drive thru ATMs.

ATM Machine height is now 48 inches

Clear floor space:
The area in front of the machine needs to equal 48″ x 48″ (16 square feet).

ATM Machines needs 48 inches by 48 inches of clear floor space

Accessible route:
One unobstructed side of the clear floor space must adjoin an accessible route or another clear floor space leading up to the ATM and connecting to the clear floor space in front of the ATM. This is for wheel chair accessibility.

ATM ADA Accessible Route

Voice Guidance:
All ATMs must be speech enabled to service visually impaired customers. This may require a 3.5mm female jack be accessible for head phones.

ATM ADA Voice Guidance Standards

Display Screen:
Visibility from 40″ above the center of the floor in front of the ATM, characters on the screen must be in San Sarif font. A minimum of 3/16″ high and must contrast with their background.

Braille Instructions:

Braille Instructions to initiate the aforementioned voice guidance feature must also be provided.

ATM ADA Standards for Braille Instructions

Function Keys:
Function keys must be designed to contrast visually from their background surfaces.

Input device:
Input device controls must be tactically discernible, meaning the key surfaces must be raised above the surrounding surfaces.

Numeric Keypads:
Keypads must be arranged in an ascending or descending layout. The enter key should be marked with a raised circle, the clear key with a raised left arrow, and the cancel key should be marked with a raised X. The add value key should be marked with a raised plus sign and the decrease value key should be marked with a raised minus sign.

ATM ADA Standards for Numeric Keypad

If your location has multiple ATMs the most accessible ATM must meet these new 2012 ATM standards. However, the law requires the terminal inside a location and one outside the same location be considered two separate locations. In cases like these both must be compliant.

These laws will be applied to all lobby and walk up thru-the-wall ATMs. There will be no safe harbor granted for existing units and no grandfathering of currently deployed machines.. While there are many ATM operators and banks taking a “wait and see” attitude this could potentially be a costly proposition as any ATMs that don’t meet ADA standards by the 2012 deadline could result in a civil penalty of up to $55,000 for a first offense and double that amount for subsequent offenses.

ATMDepot suggests you take this opportunity to inventory your existing ATMs and record the manufacturer, model number, and year manufactured. It would also be wise to note each terminals software and speech capabilities.

If you need help, we suggest you check with your respective vendors for more details regarding upgradability and cost. ATMDepot is able to offer several upgrade kits and exceptional pricing on new replacement ATMs in cases where you need to upgrade or replace entire machines (generally older ATM models) in order to be compliant.

Be especially careful of used or previously refurbished ATM machines at this time as there are a lot of non-compliant machines on the market that cannot be setup. Make sure the ATM you plan to purchase, especially if it’s used or refurbished, is already completely upgraded or compliant with new ADA standards. All new machines shipped from ATM manufacturers today come fully ADA compliant.

You can find more information about the ADA standards for 2012 at ada.gov

You can find us at atmdepot.com or you can follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Youtube.

[VIDEO] Explosives Used to Break into Machine during ATM Robbery, Thieves Caught on HD Camera

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On August 11, 2017, two criminals drove their SUV up to a Gas Station ATM Kiosk with a plan. They planned to execute an ATM robbery by blowing up the ATM with some sort of liquid explosive. It is clear from this video, it’s not the first time they are attempting this. They are wanted by the FBI. The authorities were very excited to see the quality of our security footage.

Authorities_On_Scene

Authorities at the Crime Scene of the ATM Robbery in San Diego, CA

When you start using explosives on an ATM, you attract a lot of attention. You get the local police, sheriffs, SWAT, the Bomb Squad, ATF, and the FBI involved. That’s a lot of manpower hunting you down.

These guys are wanted by the FBI. It’s not just a local crime.  Is a few grand worth having to hide and run for the rest of your life? I don’t think so.

The suspects think they got away with it. However, as time will tell, and with the help of this HD video, and the enhancement tools Federal Law Enforcement agencies have available, they will most likely do time behind bars for this ATM robbery.  Maybe they will save all the money they stole to pay for their lawyer. They will need it.

I’ve been in the ATM business since 1994. Since then, I’ve helped hundreds of Independent ATM Deployers (IAD’s) start, run, and maintain successful ATM businesses. I’ve personally sold or installed hundreds and hundreds of ATM machines. I currently manage thousands of machines and hundreds of thousands of ATM transactions nationwide and I’ve never, ever seen anything like this.

This location has been a customer of ours for over a decade. We’ve never had any issue until we installed a new kiosk.  While this small kiosk does not appear to be bomb proof, the old kiosk building we used previously onsite was. Unfortunately for us the gas station – car wash is undergoing a remodel and needed to demolish the building, so we had to move the ATM to the other side of the parking lot.

In order not to inhibit the authority’s investigation, we won’t go into the details of what the authorities knew in this article.

However, now that we know all the details we can help others.

So, if you plan to install a kiosk and you are one of our customers (or want to be), please contact our office for some additional help.

We learned an expensive lesson, so we hope to use it to educate our customers.

ATM Depot can certainly help you avoid the same fate. We thought we prepared for every security scenario but they proved us wrong on this one. The key is that we learned an awful lot from this and can now assist our customers even better when dealing with outdoor ATMs.

**** UPDATE ****

September 28, 2017

After many calls between the account manager, Jeremy, and the FBI and ATF, on this situation, we learned that the authorities were able to issue a subpoena at the home of Scott Michael Petri. We are not sure how all this went down but we speculate that the FBI was able to leverage the information obtained in the video of the ATM robbery. According to law enforcement, one of the suspects bragged to a confidential informant about the crime. Upon serving a subpoena at the suspects home, the Law enforcement authorities say they found a drill, a gas cylinder, clothing and other incriminating evidence in his home that matched the items in the surveillance video during the crime.

Court documents allege (and video shows) Petri used a cordless drill to make two holes in the ATM machine’s housing. A second unidentified suspect (now in custody) approached the ATM with an open flame (see video, looks like a cigarette) and lit a fuse.  The suspects drove to the other side of the gas station and the ATM exploded. See the entire ATM robbery (edited for time) in the video above.

Suspect_Searching

The suspect (circled) is searching for the cash box after the ATM robbery explosion

The August robbery was the second time this year an explosive device was used on an ATM in San Diego, according to the FBI.

**** UPDATE ****

October 5, 2017

Scott Michael Petri faces a charge of using an explosive to damage property relating to a robbery at the Chevron Station and Pit Stop Car Wash on Miramar Road just south of the 15 Freeway entrance. The suspect was picked up and booked on October 5th and transferred into Federal custody and is being held in the Federal Prison in Downtown San Diego by the ATF. Bail has been set at $250,000.

ATM_Suspect_Arrested

Public arrest records for Scott Michael Petri. One of the suspects in the ATM robbery.

Finding the Cash

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ATM businessIf you have an ATM business, then you’ve already done your research and found it to be one of the most lucrative businesses you could have chosen to be in. The ATM business is easy to manage and operate, and you’re all but guaranteed a profit from your customers…that is, those that can find your machines.

A lot of the problem that most ATM owners face is finding ideal locations to put their cash machines. It may seem that this is a no-brainer since everybody at one time or another needs to get to an ATM machine. Surprisingly however, there are some business owners who are often surprised by the lack of traffic that their machines often get. Is this lack of traffic due to location, visibility, dependability or availability?

Yes, yes, yes, and yes!

Cash machine owners must understand that customers who frequent ATM machines are those who need convenience and flexibility. If your machines are in the right place, at the right time, and at the right locations, then your profits are all but guaranteed, and a happy customer you will make!

Location

ATM locationAlthough it may not seem or sound like a big enough deal, but location is crucial to the success of your ATM cash business. There are definitely good spots AND bad spots where you can position your ATM machines. Put it in the wrong place (or a not-as-good-as-can-be place), and your profits suffer. Put the machine in the right place (such as, IDEAL), and your profits soar. Where are little known and good spots?

  • Outdoor concerts and venues
  • Traveling fairs and carnivals
  • Schools (colleges, high schools, universities)

Visibility

As if location itself weren’t important enough, the visibility of your ATM machine is the second most important consideration for you to look at once you’ve found the ideal spot.

It doesn’t do your machine any good to be in the ideal spot, but no one can see it or doesn’t even know it’s there. Steer clear of placing the machine behind venues where it’s likely the machine won’t be seen. If it’s permissible with the venue’s owners or managers, ask to have signs pointing to where your machines will be located on the property. This is something that is certainly workable with negotiating, especially if there are multiple ATM’s on the site.

Also, when you’re looking for good visibility, also be aware of security and placing the machine where people won’t be worried about using the machine. Place in a well-lit, approachable place where there’s a fair amount of foot traffic, but not too crowded. You also don’t want customers to feel uneasy if there’s TOO much traffic around him while he’s making a transaction.

Dependability

Now that customers know where the machines are located at the fantastic venue or permanent location, you’ll need to be sure that your machines are operating in good condition and well-stocked. There is nothing as aggravating to an ATM customer as to traipse all over the venue or site to get to your machines….and they don’t work!

Make it a point to perform routine maintenance on the ATM machines to ensure that they’re all working properly. Do this especially, and more importantly, before big events. If there are any problems that arise with the unit, have them serviced as soon as possible. In the case of machines that are inoperable for long periods of time, use an alternative solution. If you own multiple machines in the same venue, direct customers to where they can find your other cash machines on the property.

Also, make sure the cash is in the machines, and in sufficient denominations for the customers. This is a task that you will want to check on more often than a couple of times a week, especially if the machine is in a permanent location.

Availability

Where there’s an ATM machine, there will certainly be customers who will use it. With that, there needs to be machines available for them to use. In other words, be creative about where you choose to put your cash machines. If the places are safe enough and have high foot and/or car traffic, then your machine will certainly get some customers and make a profit. But, if there’s not an option for them to use, no one profits on either side.

Just by taking a little time to ramp up your ATM cash machine marketing efforts can make all the difference in your bottom line. Get creative with your placements, and take all of the above steps into consideration with your business. Provide a way for customers to find the cash machines, and you’ll have a way to make your business a successful one.

 

 

How to Load an ATM Machine

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ATM Models to Consider for Your ATM Business

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For an ATM business to run successfully you need a reliable machine that is up to date and ready to serve all your customers at all times. Selecting any of these ATMs you’ll be up to date on the latest features and also be able to update your machine with the newest software when needed.

Hyosung Halo ATM

Halo Nautilus Hyosung ATM machine for sale -888-959-2269The Halo is set apart by (and named for) the circle of light that surrounds the recessed pin pad and illuminates it with a constantly changing spectrum of colors. This is an attention getting machine and the numbers speak for themselves.

Owners with the new+ Halo are reporting increased usage as the machine is very noticeable as it comes standard with a large 10-inch LCD screen (about the size of an ipad) using Microsoft Windows as the operating system so adding custom graphics to that incredible screen is made simple. The Halo is also available with an optional high gloss white finish. Read more