Have you planned for the inevitable?
Usually this question means estate planning, wills, funeral costs and wishes etc. But there can be one important thing that’s overlooked. A catalogue of information. All the accounts. All the passwords. Subscriptions. All the pin codes. How everything is paid for. The social media accounts. The email accounts. Or even better, the master login for a password manager or vault like LastPass, where everything is stored. How and where archived information and photos are stored. How quirks or emergency issues are dealt with around the house.
Why is this important?
Because one person in a couple may overwhelmingly deal with finances and pay bills. They may know all the bank accounts, credit cards, set up accounts and know all the passwords. They may know where all the important switches are around the house. The other person may only have a fleeting awareness of various accounts and how things work, or maybe no awareness at all. While it would be better if both knew everything, for various reasons that may not happen, but at some point, they may be required to know, or at the very least, be able to access that information.
Anything that’s required for the household to continue to function should be documented. If a piece of information is only stored in one person’s memory, then it can be lost in an instant. At one time or another we’ve probably all attempted to access accounts that we’ve forgotten a password to and understand how frustrating it is. It’s doubly frustrating if the account is linked to inaccessible email address or old phone number.
Some have termed them “death folders”, but a more palatable term might be a “continuity folder”, also for the fact someone doesn’t necessarily have to die to make information inaccessible. A stroke, mental or cognitive decline, or traumatic brain injury may be as equally damaging to information recovery as an unexpected death. Having information catalogued and easily accessed for those that need it (but not too easily) ensures continuity of life without too many disruptions, after what might be a turbulent and emotional period.
Organise
The best way to start is with a checklist. The check list can also form part of the continuity folder because it can indicate what’s been collated. It can also be stored separately to the folder. Indicating where the continuity folder is, along with any other important documents.
Things to check off? Where the folder is located. Burial plans. Health care documents. Financial accounts and records. Household and possession documents. Insurance policies. All legal information, passport, birth certificate, driver’s license, wills, Medicare cards, passwords. Miscellaneous details and information for things around the house like pumps, lights, wifi that may not immediately be considered.
Where to store?
There might be a temptation to keep all this information in the home, but you don’t really want a physical hive of information, and passwords, kept solely on your premises. Firstly, in case of a break in, or secondly in case of a ruinous event where it could be destroyed, like a fire.
Somewhere secure is a good start. Whether that be a safety deposit box at the bank. Your own safe. At your solicitor’s office. With trusted friends, children, or relatives. That’s if it’s a physical document. It could potentially be stored online as a shared document another person has access to. This means a partner, or those who are trusted, have access to the document, so they know the who, what, where and why of everything important.
When it comes to passwords, a great innovation is a password manager or vault. Everything can be stored in the vault and it requires a master password to access. The master password is usually required when you open your browser, if you want to use the passwords. Every 30 days you’ll be prompted to enter a token via an authenticator on your phone to retrust your browser again.
This raises another point: phone access. Our phones are usually locked, and more and more account access rely on 2-factor authentication. If one partner needs to access an SMS code or provide a code from an authenticator, they’ll need to know how to unlock their partner’s phone if there’s not dual access to accounts.
Continually Updated
A continuity folder can’t simply be left to gather dust. It’s a living document, so it needs to be periodically reviewed to ensure the information remains current. No point having various passwords being stored physically and going out of date when they were reset 9 months ago. Another reason why a password manager or vault may be beneficial. As passwords change, you’re prompted by the password manager to push changes into the vault and update passwords as they change.
Even if one partner is the administrator of a password manager or vault, they can share access to the passwords to the other partner. When that partner logs into their account, they have access to all the passwords that have been shared.
Why Not Me?
A final thing that can be included in the continuity folder is a letter of wishes. This can explain decisions made in the will if there’s the potential for them to be contentious, or just a reminder if gifts have been made or assistance given at an earlier time. The aim is to avoid family squabbles. It could be explained ahead of time, and it probably will be, but there’s nothing like having a reminder just to ensure decisions are underlined and hopefully adhered to.
The key thing to remember? There’s no right or wrong way to do this, but there are now dedicated books and guides and checklists available online. Google “death folder” or “death binder”. Some information is better than none, and a lot of information is better than only some. When it comes to accessibility, making this information easier to find is better than leaving breadcrumbs, or something akin to a treasure map relatives are left to decipher.
Finally, almost as important as the actual folder, is that someone knows it exists. There’s no point going to the trouble of collating and maintaining all this information with the belief that you may be able to reveal its existence a minute before midnight. Some of us aren’t afforded the luxury of anticipating or understanding the timing of our exits.
This represents general information only. Before making any financial or investment decisions, we recommend you consult a financial planner to take into account your personal investment objectives, financial situation and individual needs.
