Legacy binder checklist: what your family needs to know (UK)

The quick version

1. List every account, policy, property and regular bill, with the provider and a reference, never a full number or password.
2. Write down where the originals are kept: your will, deeds, policies and ID.
3. Record your wishes, and who should look after children, adults you care for and pets.
4. Keep the binder safe, tell someone you trust where it is and review it every year.

Dates to review

• Binder last reviewed
• Next yearly review
• Will last updated
• Passport expiry
• Driving licence renewal
• Home insurance renewal
• Car insurance and MOT
• Life insurance and pension review

Set a yearly review date and add renewal dates as policies and documents come up for renewal.

How to section your binder

What this binder is for

Case Ready is a document organisation tool. This binder gathers what the people you trust would need to know if you were ill or after your death, in one place.

• Write down where things are, not secrets
• Keep it somewhere safe and tell someone you trust where it is
• Review it once a year

What this binder is not

Case Ready:

• Is not a will and does not replace one
• Is not a power of attorney
• Does not provide legal, tax or financial advice

For advice, speak to a solicitor, or Citizens Advice for free general information.

Keeping it safe

This binder will hold personal information. Never write down passwords, PINs or full account numbers: note where they are kept instead (for example, the name of your password manager). Keep the binder somewhere secure and tell your executor or a trusted person where it is.

How to use this binder

• Fill in a section at a time; an hour a week is plenty
• Write where things are kept, never passwords or full account numbers
• Keep the original will with your solicitor or somewhere safe, and note where
• Review it once a year and after any big change

A will

This binder is not a will. A will says who inherits and who deals with your estate. The rules on wills differ in England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, so take advice in the nation where you live.

Power of attorney

A power of attorney lets someone you trust make decisions for you if you cannot. England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland each have their own forms and registration rules. Note on the documents page whether you have one and where it is kept.

What your executor will need

Executors usually start by finding the will, then listing every account, policy, property and debt so they can contact each one. Sections D to G are set out to give them exactly that list.

Digital accounts

Some online services let you choose a legacy contact or decide what happens to your account. Note your choices on the digital accounts page. Never write passwords: note where they are kept instead.

Terms used in this organiser

• Executor: the person named in a will to deal with the estate
• Estate: everything a person owns and owes when they die
• Beneficiary: a person or charity who receives something from the estate
• Probate (confirmation in Scotland): the legal authority to deal with the estate

Keeping this binder up to date

• Front sheet filled in and dated
• Where the original will is kept, noted
• Key contacts listed, including your executors
• Every bank and savings account listed (no full numbers)
• Insurance and pensions listed with providers
• Bills and subscriptions listed
• Where documents are kept, filled in
• Wishes page completed
• A trusted person knows where this binder is
• Next review date set