Not to be morbid, but we are all going to die at some point… hopefully later rather than sooner. But to make sure your loved ones know about important accounts and login information, you should create an "In Case I Die" document which has this information. I have one I created for my wife which contains the following information:
- Social security number
- Life insurance policy numbers
- Business bank accounts
- 401K & IRA accounts
Next to each account I include the following information:
- Respective website
- User Name and Password for the account on that site
- Any important notes regarding that account
The point of this is to make sure she has all the information she needs in front of her in the event of a disaster. If something were to happen to me, the last thing I want her to worry about is trying to find policy and account numbers which is why this document is so important.
As for storage of this document, due to the sensitive nature of the information it holds, you will want to be sure to only keep a hard copy in a safe place with any copies on your computer encrypted. Personally, I keep an Excel spreadsheet attached to an entry in Keepass so the file is encrypted. Whenever I need to update this document, I just open the encrypted file, edit it and then update the file in Keepass. At no point does an unencrypted file remain on my computer.
So you have not already created a document like this, you might want to consider it.
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While you are at it, make up a legal will.
And a Living Will, for that matter. This should be a separate document from your Will ( the one that determines what happens to your estate). The living will determines what you want to happen if you are brain dead, on life support, in a coma, etc.
The most secure place to put the “in case I die” document, in my opinion, is on a USB drive, in a fireproof safe (next to BOTH of your wills).
On a USB drive? How do your benefactors prove you wrote it? I probably want to do this on paper with signed witnesses. Keep it in a safe deposit box.
Correction….You probably want to do this….
David M-
No, I have both of my wills notarized.
The ‘in case I die’ document details login information that should be kept secure, and a loved one won’t need to prove I wrote it. They simply may need access to the online accounts. Who is legally entitled to what those accounts contain is defined in the notarized documents. Yes, a safe deposit box is a better option than the safe, but I know plenty of people who do it each way, and neither is a horrible idea. (plenty of people don’t take the time to even get a legal will, living will, or if they do, they don’t secure it anywhere)