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Ask HN: If you die, what have you organized?

13 points by Johan_Bavaud ↗ HN
I'm working on a solution to organize everything before the death.

TL;DR A solution to manage the transmission of the data and assets to the family.

Questions : what have you already organized ? What do you plan to organize (from the transmission of your twitter account to your access to HN)?

Thanks !

20 comments

[ 2.8 ms ] story [ 57.6 ms ] thread
dev_north_east
My wife knows that there's a book in our fire box which has account numbers of bank, pension, life insurance etc and contact details for same. That's about it.
baccredited
For me it isn't worth it. Keep a paper copy of the important stuff, like your life insurance policy. Show your spouse where you put it.

If you have a decent chunk of life insurance it will make chasing down the other stuff much less important.

Johan_Bavaud
Thanks for your answer,

Did you already manage a death ?

I mean the "technical side", not the bereavement.

7402
Paper copy of all passwords in safe deposit box. Paper copy of account numbers in fireproof box.

I would never rely on a computer-based solution for this.

Johan_Bavaud
Thanks you for your comment.

"I would never rely on a computer-based solution for this."

Could I know precisely why ? (your answer could help a lot).

banjodeluxe
I don't think I'd go as far as saying I'd never rely on a computer-based solution, but I am weary of putting all this extremely important information in a potentially vulnerable place. As a lot of people here are saying, paper might just do the trick.

So I guess for your purposes this means focus heavily on security. Keep us updated on how it goes!

Spooky23
Managing physical custody of something is just easier.

Any cloud solution is one credit card expiration away from destruction. Other solutions are difficult for loved ones to find.

7402
Paper is a system that would have worked 30 years ago, unchanged to today. I think there's a reasonable chance that the same system would be working, unchanged, 30 years from now.

How many computer-based systems from 30 years ago are working unchanged to today?

Also, it's a system that any member of my family at any time in the past half-century from ages 12 to 98 could have understood. I think there's a reasonable chance that the same technology (paper & boxes) will be understandable for the next half-century, as well.

If you want to be updating a computer-based system for something as important as this every 5 years, that's fine. Everyone needs a hobby. But I have no guarantee that my family will be interested in or comfortable with it when it is needed.

trykondev
I haven't really organized anything, and I appreciate this post as a wake-up call to start putting a solution in place.
Johan_Bavaud
Thanks for your answer and happy to make this wake-up call.

I don't want to promote a product as I am looking for feed-backs, especially on the idea of "doing something in case of ...".

But soon I will open a "show HN" and it will give you a second wake-up call.

knopkop_
Bitcoin seed words in a safe location, with instructions on asking a trusted friend to set it up.
Johan_Bavaud
How do you write or give your instructions to this trusted friend ?
CyberFonic
My wife and I know one another's passwords, PIN numbers, etc. So in the event of one of us dying before the other, we can access all the relevant computer, etc stuff. Other than that, wills, PoA, etc take care of the legal stuff.

Records of passwords, etc are useless if you change them on a regular basis. How can you be sure that you update the paper records?

Johan_Bavaud
How can you be sure that you update the paper records?

Good question. Anybody ?

tomjen3
There is a detailed list of what I want to happen and who should get what in a container in my closet, but here isn't any passwords, because I don't want my family to get access to all my online accounts -- they have the email we have exchanged over the years (hopefully decades to come) and that is what I want them to have.
nopmat
This is information you should corral beforehand, based on a list I made of what had to be done after my father died:

POST-MORTEM INFORMATION

bills in your name

charity contributions, automatically withdrawn

friends, employers, and relatives to inform

funeral arrangements

government agencies to inform of death

- county

- DMV

- library

- Medicare

- Social Security

- voter registration board

health care provider list

- physicians

- primary care provider

- specialists

- medical and dental insurance companies

- prescription insurance company

hiding places

internet service provider

legal documents

- will

- living will and advance directives

- power of attorney

- health care power of attorney

life insurance policies

medical bills and health insurance records

memberships to terminate

obituary information

online accounts

- banking

- credit cards

- credit reporting agencies

- data backup

- health care portals

- health insurance

- media storage

- social media

subscriptions

- apps and software

- media, paper and online

- shopping services

organizations and educational institutions to inform

pensions

professional services

- attorney, etc.

survivor and death benefits

- employer

- military

- Social Security

tax exemptions available for survivor

- widow/er tax exemption

tax information, personal

- tax documents and information (current year)

- Federal

- state

- city

- tax preparer/accountant contact information

utilities

- electric

- phone

- fuel

- ISP

valuable possessions and heirlooms

vehicle registration and title

vital records and government ID

- birth certificate

- marriage license

- driver's license or state-issued ID

Edits: formatting

nopmat
Forgot to add:

- investments

- real estate