What Documents Should My Family Know About Before I Die?

The single most important document your family needs to find is your will, yet a surprising number of people make one and then never tell anyone where it is kept. Whether it is stored at home, with a solicitor, or through a will storage service, make sure at least one trusted person, ideally your named executor, knows exactly where the original is and how to access it.

It is also worth telling them, in general terms, that a will exists at all and roughly what it covers, such as who your executors are, so they are not caught completely by surprise. You do not need to share every detail in advance, just enough that they know where to look and who is meant to be involved.

A simple list of your banks, savings accounts, ISAs, pensions and any investments, along with the name of each provider, is one of the most useful things you can leave for your family, since finding accounts you never told anyone about can take months and sometimes never happens at all.

You do not need to include account numbers or passwords in a document that others might see casually. A list of institution names and roughly what each account or policy is for is usually enough for an executor to begin contacting providers and requesting what they need through the proper process.

If you own property, your family will need to know where the title deeds or Land Registry information is kept, along with details of any outstanding mortgage and the lender. This matters both for administering the estate and for making sure the property remains properly insured while everything is being dealt with.

It is worth also noting where buildings and contents insurance policies are held, along with car insurance and any other significant policies, so that cover is not accidentally allowed to lapse during an already difficult time.

Documents such as your passport, birth and marriage certificates, and National Insurance details are often needed during estate administration and probate, and it helps enormously if your family knows roughly where these are kept rather than needing to request replacements, which takes time.

If you have specific funeral wishes, whether about burial, cremation, or the kind of service you would like, writing these down separately and telling someone where to find them means your family is not left guessing during an emotional time, even though funeral wishes are not usually part of the will itself.

A simple written list, kept somewhere secure such as with your will, in a home safe, or with a trusted person, works well for most people. Update it periodically, particularly after opening or closing accounts, moving house, or any other significant change, since an outdated list can be almost as unhelpful as no list at all.

Keep sensitive details like passwords and PINs separate from this list and never in your will itself, since a will can become a publicly accessible document once probate is granted. Instead, consider a password manager or a secure note that you tell your executor how to access, without recording the passwords themselves in a document others might see.