In New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, the US Supreme Court struck down part of New York’s century-old gun laws, loosening restrictions for carrying firearms in public on June 23, 2022. Soon afterwards, the state legislature convened a special session to pass new rules, which the state’s Governor signed into law on July 1, 2022. In consequence, legislation took effect on September 1 that prohibits people from carrying guns in over 25 public and private places in the state of New York.
These new restrictions present challenges for law-abiding gun owners who want the option to carry while venturing out of their homes. In-vehicle safes help gun owners comply with the new law, giving them a secure place to stow weapons while visiting locations that forbid firearms.
New York State’s new gun laws
According to the New York Attorney General, locations where guns are now banned include “sensitive places” such as “colleges and universities, hospitals, houses of worship, public transportation, including subways, places where alcohol is consumed, homeless shelters and other public residential facilities, entertainment venues, such as stadiums, theaters, casinos, and polling places, and places where children gather, such as schools, daycare centers, playgrounds, libraries, parks, and zoos.”
The Attorney General also noted the law’s new rules for safe storage in vehicles which, “prohibit gun owners from leaving a firearm in a car unless stored in a lockbox with ammunition removed.”
“Glove compartments are not considered appropriate safe storage depositories,” Sullivan County Clerk Russell Reeves explained. “If you leave your gun unattended in a vehicle, it must be unloaded and locked in a fire-, impact-, and tamper-resistant storage depository that is hidden from view.”
According to the new rules, an adult must stay inside vehicles that do not have such a lockable safe whenever they contain firearms. The purpose of this is to ensure the weapons’ security and deter break-ins. Additionally, for basic safety reasons, children must never be left unattended in vehicles that contain firearms.
The solution: In-vehicle safes
The good news is that safes that can be installed in vehicles — either during the manufacturing process or as an add-on later — already exist. For instance, along with the Original In-Vehicle Safe, Console Vault offers easy-to-install lockboxes for a wide variety of brands of cars, trucks, and even motorcycles. Options exist for drivers and riders of Cadillac, Chevrolet, Chrysler, Dodge, Ford, GMC, Harley Davidson, Honda, Jeep, Kia, Lexus, Lincoln, Nissan, Subaru, Tesla, Toyota, and Volkswagen vehicles.
The ingenious design of these lockboxes means no drilling or cutting is required. In a testament to the quality of Console Vault’s products, Ford offers the brand as original equipment for a variety of Ford vehicles including the current model year F-150 and Ford Super Duty. While some in-vehicle safes are made from plastic or aluminum, Console Vaults are made of 12-gauge steel for strength and durability.
“We’ve designed them to maximize owners’ peace of mind,” Scott Bonvissuto, Founder of Console Vault, explained. “With a Console Vault In-Vehicle Safe, securing valuables and firearms when you can’t carry is easy and convenient.”
While people might initially buy an in-vehicle safe to abide by the new laws, these lockboxes have many additional applications.
“It’s a great place to store cash, medications, valuables – anything they want to keep safe,” Bonvissuto said. “I think they’ll soon find it comes in handy for all kinds of reasons. In retrospect, they’ll wonder how they ever did without one.”
