I own a Lifeventure money belt and have been using it on an occasional basis for over three years. I am familiar with the product features and failings and believe this makes me qualified to write an unbiased Lifeventure money belt review.
Although Lifeventure Money Belt Review is unbiased, I am going to begin by stating up front that I do not recommend you buy this brand of money belt. The last two times I wore mine around my waist the buckle came open. Had I not noticed, I could have lost my credit cards and passport. In fact, I’m surprised that I didn’t. Naturally, I am also relieved that I “got lucky” on the two occasions the money belt let me down but I won’t be using the body wallet again. I don’t trust it.
The first time the buckle came open I never felt a thing. I only noticed when I went to use a public toilet. While I was standing in front of the urinal, I looked down to open my pants and saw the money belt buckle and around four inches of the waist strap was dangling out from beneath my shirt. I was shocked.
I was lucky the most of my shirt was still tucked into my trousers. Had that not been the case I would have lost the belt and all it contained. I was also lucky no pickpockets had noticed it because a skilled thief would have been able to take the body wallet without my noticing.
The second time this happened I never felt anything either. I was standing at the bus stop outside Prague train station, waiting for a bus to Bucharest. I happened to look down and saw the strap was dangling out from underneath my shirt again.
Why I Chose to Buy a Lifeventure Money Belt Over Other Brands
My decision to buy a Lifeventure money belt was a spontaneous one. I saw it in a store that sold outdoor and camping gear and I bought it. Had it been a planned purchase, I would have already done some research on the best money belts to buy and may not have bought this particular make or model.
It would have also been nice if the store I bought it from had a few other makes in stock. That would have allowed me to make a comparison of the quality and features. Unfortunately, the store was obviously pushing the Lifeventure brand because although they had a couple of other money belts for sale, all of them were made by Lifeventure.
Product Features
Lifeventure produces two main types of money belt. One type is a traditional body wallet. The other is a belt for holding up your pants. It has a small hidden compartment that can house a few notes.
Most of the body wallets are very similar, so this Lifeventure Money Belt Review should be applicable to them all. When I bought my body wallet, the store had three types and one of them was waterproof. I did not require a waterproof money belt so I went with one of the others instead.
I’m not sure if this option was available when I bought my body wallet, but Lifeventure presently offers a version that shields the contents of the wallet from radio frequency identification (RFiD) readers. It’s a good idea, but the basic body wallet design is the same as the company’s other options and many competing manufacturers have body wallets that offer RFiD protection combined with a reliable buckle and strap.
My Body Wallet consists of two zipped compartments. I found the smaller one on the front very handy for storing credit cards I may need to access easily. The larger pocket is big enough to hold a passport and contains a mesh division that’s stitched up the middle to form two pockets. Each pocket is large enough to hold a few credit or debit cards. I rarely carried cash in the body wallet but, when I did, I stored it in the large compartment, next to my passport.
Things I Noticed While Wearing and Using My Money Belt
The quality of the zips is good. They run smoothly and there is no fabric near them that can become trapped and cause them to stick. The quality of the cloth used to make the body wallet is also very good. The strap is a different matter. It’s made of elasticated fabric. This pretty common for body wallets, but the strap on my Lifeventure money belt has already become ragged in places and has pieces of elastic protruding from it. I owned my previous money belt for more than two decades and never had a problem like this.
However, the buckle is the biggest problem with the Lifeventure money belt by far. The fact that it’s a “quick release buckle” could be seen as a valuable feature. It’s more of a liability. It’s too quick to release, whether you want it to or not. My old money belt had a buckle that could only be opened by simultaneously pressing on the lock mechanism at the top and bottom of the buckle. This is a far superior idea. To open the quick release button on a Lifeventure money belt, all you have to do is press the button on the front. I’ll never know for sure, but I have a hunch the waist strap on my backpack did this for me on the two occasions I nearly lost my money belt.
If you are reading this Lifeventure Money Belt Review and wondering why the problem with the buckle never became apparent sooner, the answer is simple. In the three years, I’ve owned it, I rarely used the belt when I was walking around. I tended to put my valuables in it while I was sleeping, but only when I was sleeping in hostels. In that situation it seemed to work fine and, even if the buckle had come undone during the night, the chances of loss were minimal, to say the least.
Value For Money
I can’t remember how much I paid for my Lifeventure money belt, but I think it cost less than £20. That hardly breaks the bank, but most money belt manufacturers have body wallets that retail for a similar price and some are cheaper. I do not think the Lifeventure money belt is good value for money because the problem with the quick release buckle means it’s not fit for purpose and losing the belt could cost you dear.
Lifeventure Money Belt Review: The Bottom Line
Despite the fact that it has merit in other ways (quality zip and fabric), I’m going to end my Lifeventure Money Belt Review by stating again that I do not recommend it, though there are other reviewers that do.
Before I sat down to write this Lifeventure Money Belt Review I was curious to see if other people have had similar experiences with the item. Although there are not many reviews available I did find a couple and also noticed it included in a round-up of the best money belts to buy. I noticed something else as well. The people who were writing the reviews were using marketing photographs taken from the manufacturer’s website or other sites that are selling it. I do not believe these reviewers have any experience with this item. They are merely telling people how good it is in the hopes of making an affiliate commission. As you can see the photos in my Lifeventure Money Belt Review are not taken from other sites. I only ever review items I own and use or, in this case, used to use.
At the moment, I’m not sure if I am going to buy another money belt. I am also unable to offer a better alternative to the Lifeventure money belt because I can’t remember the brand of the one I owned before it and, even if I do buy a new money belt, I would need to use it for some time before I would be confident to recommend it.
However, if you re considering buying any brand of money belt I do recommend you pay particular attention to the buckle. If it has a quick-release type buckle like the one in my pictures, I suggest you avoid it. Most brands of money belt these days have a buckle that looks like the one in the picture below.
This type of buckle is far superior. It cannot be opened with one finger. You have to use two.
Although my money belt was more basic, if I were to buy another one I would probably buy a money belt with in-built RFiD protection. Thieves are getting incredibly clever these days and items of this nature are designed to provide security and protection. That being the case, it makes sense to buy a money belt that offers protection in as many ways as possible.
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