A UNIVERSAL PROBLEM
Every hour of every day, there are people around the world who struggle to find things.
This all comes into sharp focus when somebody dies.
When that happens, it’s often down to a family member or close friend to try to sort out the deceased person’s affairs. The person involved in the search may need to find a birth certificate, marriage certificate, insurance policies, house deeds and so on. The first hurdle to overcome is usually passwords.
Sometimes they’ll look for papers that have been lost or mislaid. Sometimes they’ll search for hours or days looking for something that doesn’t actually exist.
They’ll search for answers to questions such as:
Where did the deceased person store personal papers?
Did he/she have a Will?
Did they have life insurance? (25% never get paid out because the policy can’t be found!)
Did they have savings or investments?
Where might they have kept a record of passwords?
Where would they have kept bank account details?
How many pensions do they have?
What were their previous addresses?
Where are the house deeds?
Did they leave any final wishes, cherished possessions or funeral arrangements?
Not keeping accurate records is one of the main reasons why there’s a need for the Unclaimed Asset Register where there are billions of dollars, just waiting to be claimed.
CAN THE PROBLEM BE AVOIDED?
The answer is YES. The solution is a simple one. It’s a book with the self-explanatory title:
WHERE TO FIND THINGS WHEN I’M GONE.
When completed by the owner, the book explains EXACTLY where to find things whenever they’re required. Problems associated with lost papers need never occur again.
John Hodgson produced the book after a chance remark by his wife: “If anything were to happen to you I wouldn’t know where to begin.” That problem has been resolved.
What began as a checklist for a partner, soon became a book, written by somebody who knows exactly what it’s like to lose a close family member and be faced with having to sort things out with precious little to go on.
