MegaSack DRAW - This year's winner is user - rgwb
We will be in touch
I've not been too well over the last year and a bit, and I think that I'm realising that I narrowly avoided a "lights out" event and that would have been that.
I intend to stay around as long as I can but, as a result, I've realised that I have an amount of information such as banking details (including a 12 digit number & SecureKey information) as well as numerous logins/passwords (bill paying etc.) and assorted other bobbins that my Wife would need in the event of me no longer being around.
What would be the safest way for her to hold this information?
Virtually every tablet/smartphone has some sort of Secure Vault type application but as just about any online resource seems hackable I'm not so sure. Equally having everything on a sheet of paper in one of those home safes that you can probably pop open with a screwdriver doesn't seem wise either.
Perhaps I should sort out a will and lodge said information with it at a solicitors.
Perhaps I should sort out a will
Yes, yes you should.
Notwithstanding anything else, having a will sorted is something that pretty much all grown adults should be doing as a matter of course.
Honestly the safest way is probably written in a notebook locked in a strong box. You can get a locking box that would take far more than a screwdriver to open for not a a lot of money and then of course someone would need to find the box and think it worth the effort to open.
The problem with apps etc is if you change phones, move from iOS to Android etc and the fact that these apps are not necessarily 100% secure.
The other option would be an encrypted USB stick and again hidden somewhere safe.
Perhaps I should sort out a will and lodge said information with it at a solicitors.
I think you might have just answered your own question there. If you haven't done it already then sorting out powers of attorney etc should the worst happen is also sensible. It is all good having login info, passwords and so on, but you don't want a situation where people still won't deal with you wife because she is not you.
Also, keeping a backup of all the info on a piece of paper in a folder marked 'banking details' is likely to be handy at some point. Unless you are of interest to people who are after your fortune / secrets it is extremely unlikely that anyone will ever break in and steal the information.
My dad died about 2 years ago, he'd never been online and was shocking at keeping physical records. I managed to sort out his entire estate without half the stuff you've listed above, it wasn't the easiest job but it's perfectly possible to start with nothing and work it all out.
For example I knew he once had a Barclays account, walled in a branch with some ID for me, the death certificate and the will... 30 minutes later I had an official letter saying he'd closed the account in 2002.
The idea of storing bank details and log in details (which you'll likely change) seems like a false sense of security.
Having said that I have an A4 folder with "shit podge is dead" written on the front, it includes the most recent statements for anything I deal with that way my wife and executors can easily start work.
Just a list somewhere of what the accounts are would be sufficient, so that she could contact the various institutions with a death certificate.
Iron key is fairly secure if you want a memory stick solution, Tbf not many people will go actually to the bother or strealing and opening a stick you’ve stuffed in the back of a drawer at home.
We use LastPass anyway, but it’s good for this too. Can set one or more trusted people who can gain access to your vault, with a time delay (say if someone compromised their email, and tried to get to your stuff, you’d be informed). Can keep all sorts of notes, photos, etc in there as well as passwords.
But yes, absolutely sort out a will first and as a basic step just writing out where you have savings accounts, any investments and the like, even who your house insurance, etc are with will make life way easier for your loved ones without too much tech or effort.
I can highly recommend Bitwarden. Works in more than your phone.
I've got Lasting Power of Attorney for my mum.
She's made a will and it's registered centrally https://www.lawsociety.org.uk/en/membership/offers/certainty
I've got a folder with all her bank details / statements and a spreadsheet shared on Dropbox with my brother with all the account numbers.
Don't worry about the passwords - banks and others have a defined process for dealing with deceased customers. They'll give the executor access based on ID and death certificate.
If you want to give someone LPOA (either for care or finance) they can use it to set up their own user id and password. That's what I do for my mum. You can withdraw the LPOA at any time and misuse of it is a serious offence.
Short reply - make and register a will, write all your account numbers down and put it somewhere where it'll be found easily e.g. envelope marked "bank details" in your desk drawer.
If you die I am not sure your wife should be accessing any assets in your sole name until probate is granted, they should be locked down from death to grant (in England at least). This applies even if the will says she inherits everything (which usually makes sense as there is no IHT on spouse to spouse inheritance). Key thing there is the will.
Wills typically say what you want to give to whom, but don't typically have all your account details lodged.
What will help her is a list of everything you have/hold - who it is with, account or reference number, and an approximate value. The list alone isn't that sensitive but makes getting the estate in order easy.
It is sensible to hold day to day money and emergency sums in joint names to avoid hardship on death. Likewise for her to hold a life insurance policy against your life, some pay out remarkably quickly.
Also if you ever give gifts or loans make sure you keep a record of how much, when, who to and why. If you are a homeowners, having property in joint names as 'joint tenants' also helps smooth things out unless you intend on passing your share to someone else.
Thanks all, there's some good stuff here.
As has been pointed out, I do recognise that my Wife and I need to get our asses in gear and get wills sorted out; we've been meaning to for ages but never good around to it (despite our increasing ages, grown up stuff still seems problematic).
MS word file and encrypt it with strong password - send file to your wife by email.
Keep password in a suitable password vault on her mobile phone.
Dont believe the bollocks on the Internet about what can be hacked.
Storing passwords and suchlike I would (and do) use LastPass. You can apply extra security using 2FA. That way all that is needed for access is your master password and access to your phone (or other device used for 2FA).
Aside from that, it’s a great way to improve online security.
If you die I am not sure your wife should be accessing any assets in your sole name until probate is granted,
Ignore this, the law supports a widowed partner accessing funds like this to either pay for funeral expenses or to survive themselves.
I made a simple paper list and filed it in our filing cabinet in a folder titled "In case of my Death". My wife and kids all know about it, and where to find it.
The list has all our banking, savings, investment and other financial details (account numbers, etc) but NOT passwords. A death certificate should be sufficient for a spouse to gain control of assets.
In our case we've always invested 50/50, so my wife holds half our wealth in her own name anyway (you want to maximise your tax advantages).
And we made Wills 25 years ago, and review/update them every 5-10 years.
Perhaps I should sort out a will
And a power of attorney, in case you suddenly end up with no legal capacity rather than dead. MrsMC and her brothers are currently resolving this in respect of her parents and it's on our list if things to do this year.
Covid was a bit if a wake up call on this for our family - none of us have had it but the possibility of it and it's consequences brought it home. Actual paperwork including a copy of the will is in a fireproof security box, online stuff is listed in an old address book with log in details for each, in the box as well. Most importantly, wife and kids (17 and 14) know where it is.
Might be worth knowing that if either of you is a member of a Union they normally provide a free basic will writing service. Might have to pay for anything more complicated than leaving stuff to each other and the kids but at least it's a start, kind of the Lidl option for legal stuff but should be functional if required (hopefully not for several decades yet).
Wills typically say what you want to give to whom, but don’t typically have all your account details lodged.
Yes two different problems. Our wills just say the other gets everything - they don't say what everything is / nor where it is.
We keep all financial stuff in safes, so all my wife has to do is get a locksmith to open it and she has all the account details and most recent statements etc.
Paper hardcopy kept securely with a will. If you’re gone, people won’t want to turn digital detective on your estate. Name, company, account. Make it easy for executors. If you have appointed a solicitor, see if they can hold the details.
Executors will be dealing with companies in person/on phone, they won’t be logging into your accounts. Companies will work with them.
I did this last April for some reason I must of had something on my mind.
All details written down on paper as we inherited a huge safe with the house as it's to big to move and has 2 keys im talking 4 feet tall 3 feet deep huge it's like a fridge.
One digital copy encrypted on an old sd card that has the full family photos album on in another location.
My wife's stuff is a mess bank accounts all over I'm just writing it off if she pops her clogs.
Edit don't use an old phone as storage if the battery dies IE dead and won't turn on it's painful. Flash drive or SD card are ideal