Family Emergency Binder Checklist: What to Include

An emergency binder is one place that holds the papers, numbers and instructions your household would need if you were in hospital, away, or gone. It is for the person who has to step in, not for you. This checklist covers what to put in it, where to keep it, and how to keep it current.

Who the binder is for

Write the binder for someone who does not know how your household runs. A partner may know where the insurance policy is. A sibling or an adult child may not. Each section should let that person act without guessing.

1. Identity documents

For each member of the household:

• Birth certificates
• Passports, or a copy of the photo page
• Driver's licence or state ID
• Social Security or national ID number, written on one sheet inside the binder
• Marriage certificate, divorce decree, adoption papers
• Immigration documents such as a green card or visa
• Military discharge papers

Copies are fine for day-to-day use. Next to each copy, write where the original is.

2. Medical

• Health insurance cards, front and back
• A current list of medications and doses for each person
• Allergies and ongoing conditions
• Names and phone numbers of doctors, dentist and pharmacy
• Vaccination records for children
• Health care proxy or medical power of attorney
• Living will or advance directive
• Pet medical records and the vet's number

3. Money

• Bank accounts: institution, account type, last four digits, and how statements arrive
• Credit cards and loans, with the lender's phone number
• Mortgage or lease, with the servicer's or landlord's contact
• Retirement and investment accounts
• Life insurance policies, with the policy number and the agent's contact
• A list of recurring bills and which ones are on autopay
• Where the last few years of tax returns are kept

Do not write full account numbers or PINs here. The goal is that someone can call the right institution and prove who they are.

4. Home and property

• Deed or title, or a note saying where the original is
• Homeowner's or renter's insurance policy and the claims phone number
• Vehicle titles, registration and insurance
• Utility accounts and each provider's phone number
• A home inventory: photos or a short list of valuables, for an insurance claim
• Warranties for major appliances
• Who services the furnace, the roof and the alarm

5. Legal

• Will, and the name of the executor
• Trust documents
• Durable power of attorney
• Guardianship wishes for minor children
• The lawyer's name and phone number

Keep signed originals where the executor can get to them. The binder holds copies and says where the originals are.

6. Accounts and passwords

Do not write passwords in the binder. Instead, record:

• Which password manager you use, and where its emergency access or recovery kit is
• How your phone and computer unlock, and who holds a spare
• The email account that your other accounts recover through
• Subscriptions and memberships someone would need to cancel

Most password managers have an emergency contact feature. Set it up, then write in the binder that you did.

7. People to call

• Emergency contacts, in the order to call them
• Employer or HR contact
• Children's schools and after-school care
• Neighbours or friends who hold a key
• The executor and the person holding power of attorney

8. One page in your own words

Write one page on what you would want someone to do first. Who to call, where the pets go, what the children need, which bills cannot wait. This is the page people actually read in the first hour.

Where to keep it

Keep the physical binder somewhere a trusted person can reach without you, such as a fire-resistant box at home. Put a second copy at a relative's house. If you use a safe deposit box, check whether your bank lets a named person open it without you. Tell two people where the binder is.

For a digital copy, scan the contents and keep them in one place the same two people can get into. This is what Goffer is for: Goffer is a private AI vault for personal documents. Upload the scans, share them with the people you named above, and ask it questions like "when does the home insurance renew?" instead of leafing through the binder. Your files are never used to train AI. Whatever you use, the test is the same: can the person who needs it get in without you, and can nobody else?

How to keep it current

Set a reminder twice a year. If the binder lives in Goffer, it can remind you itself when a policy or a card is about to expire. Policies renew, cards expire, doctors change. On each pass, replace expired documents, update the medication list, check the phone numbers, and re-read your one page. A binder that is two years out of date sends someone to the wrong insurer.

A note on scanning and AI tools

Once the binder is scanned, it is tempting to paste it into a general chatbot and ask when the home insurance renews. Be careful which tool you use. Everything you paste into ChatGPT can train their models. Goffer is different.

Whichever tool you choose, apply the same test as the binder itself: only the right people can get in.

The short version

Identity documents. Medical cards, medications and directives. Account list without full numbers. Home, vehicle and insurance papers. Will, power of attorney and the lawyer's number. Password manager emergency access. People to call. One page of instructions. Two copies, two people who know where they are, a reminder twice a year.