The Cash in Transit Code of Practice 2011 is Queensland's practical WHS benchmark for businesses carrying cash, bullion, jewellery or other valuables for reward using armoured or soft-skin vehicles. It covers far more than security equipment: safe cash-in-transit work depends on planning, consultation, site and route assessment, trained workers, reliable procedures and an effective response when something goes wrong.
Information current: 8 August 2026.
Who should use this Code?
The Code is relevant to cash-in-transit operators, their workers, clients and people designing workplaces where collections, deliveries or ATM servicing occur. A builder, subcontractor or site supervisor may need to consider it when engaging a cash-in-transit operator, designing secure access, managing a shared loading area or coordinating this work at an operating site.
The Code covers armoured and soft-skin vehicle operations performed for reward. It is not directed at in-house transport by the owner of the valuables or the owner's workers. However, businesses moving their own cash still need to manage risks such as robbery, manual handling, vehicle movements and public exposure under the requirements that apply to them.
This is a Queensland approved code, not a national Model Code. Any national Model Code used for comparison should be treated as general orientation rather than automatically applicable law. Local requirements vary, so check current regulator material for the jurisdiction where the work occurs.
Main cash-in-transit hazards
Armed robbery and workplace violence are the most obvious hazards, but they are not the only ones. A practical risk review should also consider:
- unsafe access or escape routes
- poor lighting, blind spots and ineffective surveillance
- uncontrolled interaction with the public or site traffic
- unsuitable parking, loading areas or ATM locations
- vehicle condition, communications and equipment failure
- hazardous manual tasks when carrying or stacking coin and cash containers
- fatigue, heat, noise and impaired concentration
- exposure to blood or bodily substances following an injury
- psychological injury following threats, violence or a hold-up.
Hazards can change between clients, sites, routes, times and individual runs. A control that works at a quiet branch during daylight may be unsuitable at a busy construction site, shopping area or isolated collection point.
What should be sorted before work starts?
Planning should involve the cash-in-transit operator, client, experienced workers and other businesses controlling the site. Before the first run, confirm:
- the collection point, safest access and exit route, parking and loading arrangements
- lighting, visibility, CCTV, alarms and communication coverage
- public access, construction traffic, mobile plant and temporary site changes
- timing, route, staffing, vehicle type and foreseeable delays
- manual handling needs and any suitable mechanical aids
- worker competence, induction, supervision and emergency contacts
- what happens if conditions differ from the plan.
The Code describes risk management as an ongoing cycle: identify hazards, assess risks, decide controls, implement them, then monitor and review their effectiveness. Reviews should occur when sites, routes, equipment or work methods change, and after incidents or near misses.
Controls and documents that usually matter
Controls should be matched to the actual run and site. Common measures include safer access and parking, suitable vehicles, changes to routes or collection times, appropriate crew arrangements, surveillance, duress communications, manual handling aids and procedures for hold-ups.
The supporting documents will commonly include:
- a WHS management plan or risk management procedure
- client site and route assessments
- standard operating procedures and run instructions
- induction, training, refresher and supervision records
- vehicle, equipment, alarm and communication checks
- incident, corrective-action and debriefing records
- emergency and post-hold-up procedures.
Training should cover the worker's actual tasks, controls, equipment, reporting arrangements and emergency actions. Only people who have received appropriate training and instruction should perform the work, with refresher training and supervision used to maintain the required practices.
When should a SWMS or another site-specific document be checked?
Do not decide document needs from the words "cash in transit" alone. If the work occurs on a construction project, the operator and site controller should check current construction requirements for the jurisdiction and the actual activities involved before work starts. That check should determine whether a SWMS is required or whether the site and run can be managed through other task-specific documents.
The Code focuses on documented planning, risk assessment, site review, standard operating procedures, training and emergency arrangements. On a construction site, align these with the builder's or principal contractor's induction, traffic, access, security and emergency controls. Record who controls each interface and review the arrangement when the site changes.
Practical warning signs
Stop and reassess arrangements when workers find an obstructed escape route, unexpected crowds, failed lighting or CCTV, changed parking, poor communications, suspicious surveillance, an unserviceable vehicle, excessive loads or a site contact who cannot confirm the agreed controls. Repeated shortcuts, missed checks and unreported near misses are also signs that the system is not working as intended.
Following a hold-up, procedures should support immediate safety, emergency contact, first aid, preservation of evidence, prompt reporting and access to appropriate trauma support. Longer-term follow-up should also be planned.
How Blue Safe can help
Blue Safe provides compliant WHS documents tailored to the client's activities, applicable Australian WHS/OHS requirements, jurisdiction and industry. This can include risk management procedures, site assessment tools, standard operating procedures, emergency procedures, training records and SWMS where the work requires one.
Blue Safe guarantees the document compliance of the WHS documents it provides, including eligible customer documents after Blue Safe has reviewed and upgraded them. Customers actively put the compliant documents into practice through controls, consultation, training, actions, records and evidence.