Essential Documents to Protect Your Family in an Emergency
Essential Documents to Protect Your Family
in an Emergency
A grab & go binder is a family emergency folder that contains copies of your essential documents, records, and emergency plans. It’s geared toward managing your family in case of an emergency and giving you important information when you need it.
Grab & Go Binder
If you have decided to get to work making the physical form of your emergency binder, here are a few safe rules to keep in mind.
- Include only copies and keep all originals in a secure location. Never leave home with originals if you can help it. In most cases, it’s the information on the documents that will help you, and that is why digital is an option.
- Exceptions: your license, credit cards, and other obvious items.
- Keep in mind that for legal documents like Wills and Power of Attorney, etc., there are instances where the originals will need to be used, and copies will not do.
- Ultimately, it’s your decision whether to include originals in your grab and go binder. If you do, keep a copy of the documents inside a safe or another secure location.
Grab & Go
Documents & Records
Financial
Include institution names, account numbers, contact numbers, websites, and online passwords.
- checking
- savings
- credit cards
- debit cards
- safety deposit
- 401K
- retirement
- stocks/bonds/mutual funds
- other investments
- last 3 years of tax filings/returns
Insurance Policies with ID Cards
- homeowners
- auto
- life
- medical
- dental
Medical & Health
- insurance card
- allergies/dietary restrictions
- medical/surgical treatments
- list of current medications
- copies of prescriptions
- immunization record
Legal
- general power of attorney
- medical power of attorney
- durable power of attorney
- limited power of attorney
- springing power of attorney
- advanced healthcare directives
- will and codicil
- trust and amendments
- contact info for those mentioned
Identifying Records, Certificates, & Documents
- birth certificate
- death certificate
- marriage certificate
- divorce record
- prenuptial agreement
- postnuptial agreement
- child custody agreement
- social security card
- passport
- driver’s license
- state issued ID card
- military ID & service records
- adoption records
- foster care records
- naturalization documents immigration documents
- church documents
- utility bill as proof of residency
Home
- original sales appraisal & contract
- home sale worksheet
- real estate purchase agreement
- home deed
- warranty contracts
- property tax statements
- memorandum of land contract
- home inventory list with photos
Car
- car sale contract
- certificate of title (pink slip)
- vehicle lease agreement
- trade-in vehicle title
Business
- bill of sale
- operator’s license
- franchise agreement
- property title
School / Employment
- diplomas
- transcripts
- certificates
- contracts
Pet Info Packet
This is a copy of information assigned to your pet's grab & go bag and includes the description of each pet, vet contact information, important medical records, photos of you with your pet, and more. This can be critical if you become separated from your pet after evacuation and need to prove ownership. See instructions for how to create a pet info packet.
Photos
Create a digital backup of your photos and add it to your physical binder inside an envelope or as an addition to your thumb drive. If you have a cloud account, this is an excellent place to put digital copies.
Other ways to protect digital copies or originals include:
- fireproof safe
- safety deposit box
Utility Account Numbers
If you need to contact one of your utility companies after a fire or other evacuation, you will be able to identify yourself with your account number.
- electricity
- water
- gas
- trash & recycling
- satellite/cable
- streaming services
- internet provider
- landline/cell
Phone Numbers
Phone numbers in written form are important in case you can't get into your cell phone.
- family
- friends
- neighbors
- church
- child's school
- child's friends
Phone Numbers in Case of Emergency
- police non-emergency for your area
- poison control: 800-222-1222
- 24-hour nurse line
- 24-hour pediatric nurse line
- gas company
- electric company
- water/sewer company
- road conditions
- plumber
- internet provider
- landlord
- primary care physician
- pediatrician
- dentist
- pharmacy
- veterinarian
Identification Kits
ID Kits
ID kits can be used to help identify family members. The main purpose of these kits is to have vital information readily available in case of an emergency.
Primarily intended for children, the National Child Identification Program ID kit enables parents to gather crucial details. These kits facilitate the straightforward documentation of a child’s physical attributes, fingerprints, and DNA on identification cards, which are subsequently stored at the parent or guardian’s home. Though intended for children, they can be used for any family member of any age. The price is under $10 per kit.
Learn more about the National Child Identification Program ID Kit system. Once you have completed each ID kit, be sure to add a copy to your grab & go binder.
Family Emergency Plans
Emergency Plans
Your grab & go binder is the perfect place to put your printed copies of your family emergency plans. An additional, easy-to-access copy of all plans should be kept elsewhere in your house as well.
If you have chosen to create the digital binder, be sure to include printed copies of all your emergency plans. To see the full list of plans included on this website, visit How to make emergency plans and click on each plan for more information or see the main menu bar entitled Emergency Planning.
Download Grab & Go Binder Contents PDF