A summary of financial affairs becomes something more
Rodney concluded that the most practical thing would be to prepare a summary of his financial affairs in one document which could be updated as circumstances changed, and a copy of which would be made available to his children in either their capacity as enduring guardians or as executors. A wise decision would be also to send a copy of the document to his lawyer after it was updated.
So preparation of this financial summary became the beginning of what has now evolved into My Personal Information Record.
My Personal Information Record evolves for other applications
During preparation of the financial summaries, he thought that a record of his health details would assist the family in completing very detailed hospital admission forms or similar documents in case he was suddenly taken ill or badly hurt in say a car accident.
How My Personal Information Record can assist carers in later life
Next he envisaged a late life situation where he or his wife, because of declining health, might need a carer to attend to all health and financial decisions. In many families the carer would be a son or daughter who may know something of a parent’s history but not necessarily enough to quickly take over the role of full-time carer if this became necessary. For many other families or single people, their carers may have no such knowledge whatsoever. So a listing of professional advisers would help enormously if it was available when needed.
As Rod saw an additional need or option, he added new schedules such as:
- Sched 7a (Vaccinations)
- Sched 11 (Insurances and Registrations)
- Sched 12 (Electronic Payments Listing).
Over the past decade one banking change has had a profound effect on all our lives. That is the move away from paper transactions (cheque and deposit books) to electronic ones. Schedule 20 has been added to record PIN’s, user names and passwords. There are precautions noted regarding security but also advice about the absolute need for at least one trusted person to have a record of your financial passwords in the case of an unexpected accident or health emergency.
Consequently, a completed My Personal Information Record has become more than a means to assist carers in the event of tragedy.
My Personal Information Record is a quick reference source for day-to-day living
- Where is my Will located ?
- When is my car insurance payment due ?
- What is my Lawyer’s email address ?
- What is the PIN and password for my superannuation account ?
This progression is how the current version of My Personal Information Record was devised and developed over a number of years. It is now available for you to download onto your personal computer or device and complete your own My Personal Information Record or that of a loved one.