| As victims of Hurricane Katrina and other recent | | | | information you gathered from the list above and put it |
| disasters have found, when you have to function after | | | | in two secure locations. The first location is in a bank |
| a major disaster, being without your birth certificate, | | | | safe deposit box or water/fireproof safe in your own |
| social security card or bank account numbers can be | | | | city. The second location is in a safe deposit box |
| a huge problem.But with this checklist, you'll be able to | | | | outside of your area or state. Many of the banks in |
| make a completely accessible repository all of your | | | | the hurricane-ravaged areas ended up being as |
| vital documents and communications that you can use, | | | | inaccessible to customers as their homes were.As |
| whether you're at home dealing with a medical | | | | secure as those locations are, hard copies can sustain |
| emergency, or dealing with a major disaster and need | | | | damage even in a supposedly safe place. And with |
| your important documents to start over.Let's begin by | | | | concerns about identity theft, you may also be wary |
| gathering all of your important documents. Here are | | | | about placing delicate information like identification and |
| the types of documents you need to secure.Bank | | | | credit card numbers out of your sight.So how do you |
| account information (and PIN numbers, passwords and | | | | secure your vital documents while making them |
| toll-free numbers) | | | | accessible? Simple. Just scan each document onto a |
| Investment account information (and PIN numbers, | | | | CD or Flash Drive, then password protect it and store |
| passwords and toll-free numbers) | | | | the data it in the locations mentioned above, either |
| Medical records | | | | along with, or instead of the hard copies. While you're |
| Credit cards (copies of the card, account number, | | | | at it, make an extra copy of the data and store it with |
| toll-free numbers and credit limit) | | | | your records at home. If an emergency strikes, first |
| Income tax returns | | | | grab the kids and pets, then the CD/Flash Drive, and |
| Insurance policies | | | | then Grandma's silver! A few new services take |
| Stocks/bonds | | | | security and accessibility a step further.With |
| Student identification | | | | SmartDisasterPlan.com, you can have your own online |
| Wills | | | | personal vault, with SSL security that will not only give |
| Living Wills | | | | you up to two gigabytes of memory to store |
| Power of Attorney | | | | everything from vital documents to family photos, but |
| Power of Attorney for Healthcare Decisions | | | | you can access this information from any computer |
| Driver's licenses/ID/Medicare Card | | | | with Internet access. This could have made all the |
| Marriage certificates | | | | difference for Katrina victims or Tsunami victims who |
| Birth certificates | | | | lost everything in minutes and found themselves in |
| Auto registration | | | | neighboring states/countries, badly in need of their |
| Citizenship papers | | | | most basic information. Smart Disaster Smart Disaster |
| Death/burial certificates | | | | has three different plans ranging from $15 to $39 per |
| Warranties | | | | year. They're just one company providing this type of |
| Family Immunization Records | | | | online file system, and though we've never used their |
| Family Social Security cards/numbers | | | | service, they seem terrific.If you have a video camera, |
| Property titles or deeds | | | | you may also want to videotape a walking tour of |
| Company Benefits | | | | your home, featuring the home and any pricier |
| Contact information for your doctors, lawyer, | | | | possessions you have. Not only does this show claims |
| accountant, broker etc | | | | adjusters what you have and it's present condition, but |
| Optional | | | | if you ever need to make a claim, it will jog your |
| Health and Medical Records | | | | memory of what you have and what would need |
| Safe Deposit Box Key | | | | replacing.Want to know the biggest impediment to |
| Photos/Videos of your possessions and registration | | | | safeguarding all of the things you hold dear. |
| numbers | | | | Procrastination! Taking fifteen or twenty minutes today |
| Household Inventory | | | | to take care of business, can save you days, months |
| Since you want to make sure you have what you | | | | or even years of pain.You can find even more |
| need in an emergency, the idea is to put this | | | | information about keeping your family, emergency |
| information in places that will be accessible to you, | | | | information and vital documents safe in the Making |
| even if you are unable to get inside your home.As a | | | | Your Family Safe in 15 Minutes or Less, Action Plan. |
| first-line of defense, make two copies of all of the | | | | Download it free from our website at today. |