USE SECURE ONLINE TECHNOLOGY TO STORE YOUR IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS
One of the most important things you can do for yourself, and your family, is to create a comprehensive estate plan which contains documents that ensure your wishes are respected in the event of your illness or death. While you may choose to store your originals securely at home or in a safe deposit box at the bank, what happens if you were to suddenly need access in an emergency situation? Can you or your family easily get to those documents when they are needed? How about remote access while you are traveling?
The good news is that you can by using a secure online vault.
Do you know where your estate plan documents are?
Maybe while on vacation you fall ill or are injured and must be rushed to the hospital in the middle of the night. You have a health care proxy within your estate planning documents, so that your appointed designee can make health care decisions for you if you lose the ability, but did you bring it with you? In that moment, the last thing you would want to be concerned about is contacting your estate planning attorney to get a copy of your documents.
Or perhaps you have recently moved out of state, or added children or grandchildren to your family, and you want to review your will to ensure that it accounts for these new life changes. It’s possible that if you’ve left your estate plan with your attorney, but haven’t been in touch with them in some time, they may have retired or moved. Documents could get lost in the shuffle. Now what?
Having easy access to your estate planning documents is just as important as creating them!
Use a secure online vault.
You can keep originals in a fireproof safe, but a secure online vault will give you easy access to digital versions of your documents with just your phone and an internet connection. You may use specialized software intended just for these important documents, or a cloud-based solution.
There are many great options to consider. Here are a few:
- ShareFile is a program that allows you to access stored files by way of a secure link. Documents are uploaded and remain safe in their original location and can be viewed whenever they are needed, from any device.
- Dropbox Basic is a free account which provides you with 2GB of storage. You can get to your information easily by signing into your account.
- LegalVault is a program that your estate attorney may offer to you. Your attorney may use this service to upload your legal documents and provide you with access.
Vault provided by Frisch Financial
At Frisch Financial, we provide each client with a ShareFile vault, for a secure location for digital documents and easy access. ShareFile can be found within our “Client Center” on the Frisch Financial website.
Access for family members
If you choose, you can provide login information to family members who may need to assist you. This access can be limited to the specific documents you wish to share.
If you don’t already have your estate documents in a secure online vault, you should consider taking this important step as soon as possible. We never know when an emergency may strike, and by taking the time to prepare for the future now, you are helping you and your family. If you have any questions, please contact us.
