10 Things You Must Keep in a Fire Resistant Safe

Pictures of the recent wildfires in California show families fleeing their neighborhoods. People are looking back to their houses burned, and watching their most valuable asset disappearing forever. With the help of aid across the country, California’s already starting to rebuild.

However, the risk of fire is not unique to California. The US Fire Administration estimates that fires across the country caused more than $ 11 billion of property damage in 2007. While 91% of Americans agree that it is very important to prepare for a disaster, just over half have taken steps to do so.

An excellent way to make sure you are ready to get a safe. Upon first glance, you will find safes are nothing more than tin metal boxes. Are you surprised? After further research, you will see that they are actually safer than originally thought. Search the Internet, and you will find many companies that are called “government” safes. They declare their knowledge of safes and vaults and often do not have a brick and mortar store. They only sell on the Internet.These companies will tell you what you need to know about buying a safe and offer their opinions. There are lots good places to research for good safe. In fact, getting a fireproof safe is quite easy hassle free.

The term “fireproof” is very misleading and too many companies use it to describe their safes. So what should the fire rating say? It should say “fire resistant” for a particular period. Not fire proof.

So now that you have a fire resistant safe, what should you store in it? Here is a list of 10 proposed items that should be in your fireproof safe.

1. Current insurance policies and contact information for the agent. You will need this information immediately if your home suffers damage in a fire.

2. Your family’s passports, including original birth certificates. They can be difficult to replace, and will be useful to establish the identity of you and your family members for record keeping purposes.

3. List of family doctors, prescription drugs and contact information for all the pharmacies you use. You may need to order new supplies of medications that you use on a regular basis.

4. CD or an external hard drive containing digital copies of family photos. It is a good idea to scan all the old family pictures – especially the ones you cherish – and keep a digital copy of them as well. Your family memories preserved in the photos are irreplaceable.

5. Safe deposit box keys. On the off chance that you store significant things in the bank, you need to make sure that you can get to them in a crisis.

6 Important documents related to investments, pensions, bank accounts and related details. You may need easy access to funds.

7. Information about your outstanding debts, due dates and contact information. It is important to keep an eye on your finances and protect your credit, even if a fire displaces you.

8. Original versions of Social Security cards. It can be difficult to replace them, and they may be necessary to determine eligibility for financial assistance.

9. Copies of your important legal documents, including proxies, living wills, health care documents and anything else that has been prepared by an attorney. Having access to these documents can be helpful in an emergency situation.

10. A copy of family wills and all wills in which you are designated as the executor. It’s important to safeguard wills so that loved ones are taken care of.

A fire can destroy everything you own. Many of these items are irreplaceable. Be proactive and invest in a high quality fire resistant safe. It’ll give you peace of mind.

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