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General Mannerheim · **Posted:** Thu Jun 07, 2012 11:19 pm

Just wondered how organised folk are when it comes to storing/filing important bits of paper at home such as bank statements, utility bills, tax forms, etc etc

we have a desk drawer that holds suspension files that were organised once, but nowadays we just seem to fill a Blackburn drawer up with papers then periodically sifter through, put some back in the drawer and destroy the rest - then let it mount up again.

ive got it on me that i want to be fully organised in future, were throwing out the old desk but gonna steal some binders & box files from work and get sorted - just wondered what is normally kept hold of in this day and age of internet banking and identity theft etc?

ta

Hoboh · **Posted:** Thu Jun 07, 2012 11:23 pm

12 months worth of bills etc on a rolling basis

Dujon · **Posted:** Fri Jun 08, 2012 1:02 am

You sound as disorganised as I am, General. I've been promising myself for years that I'd sort out the old bills and put them in a systematic manner into my filing cabinet. Mine finish up in plastic bags in chronological order (latest on top) but that can get messy if it's necessary to refer to one from a couple of years ago. A friend of mine has an incredibly efficient filing system: I'd suggest that he could extract a paid bill for a certain month/year in 30 seconds. That's my aim. I'll do it too, you just see. :roll:

thebish · **Posted:** Fri Jun 08, 2012 9:35 am

General Mannerheim wrote:

Just wondered how organised folk are when it comes to storing/filing important bits of paper at home such as bank statements, utility bills, tax forms, etc etc

we have a desk drawer that holds suspension files that were organised once, but nowadays we just seem to fill a Blackburn drawer up with papers then periodically sifter through, put some back in the drawer and destroy the rest - then let it mount up again.

ive got it on me that i want to be fully organised in future, were throwing out the old desk but gonna steal some binders & box files from work and get sorted - just wondered what is normally kept hold of in this day and age of internet banking and identity theft etc?

ta

I have all my important stuff - (including my will and insurance papers) in a fireproof box... it makes sense for obvious reasons..

if you have a house fire - you don't want all your insurance details burnt to a crisp along with your passport and your Will....

I keep bank statements for 2 years - not sure why!! - and P60s and wage slips (for tax purposes)
also - obviously - MOT cert. / car & bike registration documents
passports and E111s
birth/marriage certificates
insurance documentation - house, car, bike, dog, life
the kids' financial information and university loan stuff on their behalf

all in the fireproof box which has suspension files in it.

the missus keeps all of her stuff in a big pile under her desk where the dog sleeps!

Worthy4England · **Posted:** Fri Jun 08, 2012 9:41 am

I've gone paperless on everything possible, but still once a year put a couple of binbags worth in the garage. Occasionally I grab an earlier bag and dump it on a fire.

TANGODANCER · **Posted:** Fri Jun 08, 2012 11:13 am

I usually dump any out of date stuff, or credit card receipts in the Blackburn sink and pour boiling water on it. Floats the ink off and pulps the paper. Files, a lockable metal box with file hangers does the trick well enough.

Bruce Rioja · **Posted:** Fri Jun 08, 2012 12:03 pm

I have box files into which I just shove everything randomly. Some of these documents might come in handy now that I'm on a PPI mission. MBNA - you're up next! :twisted:

Abdoulaye's Twin · **Posted:** Fri Jun 08, 2012 6:12 pm

I have always just shoved stuff in a box and kept passports and the like in a separate small box/file. When going through my stuff a few months back before I moved, I discovered about 5 archive boxes of the stuff going back over a decade! I shredded nearly the lot and kept only the really important stuff. I spent that long checking I wasn't shredding anything important I just scan and chuck as I go now. Much easier to identify stuff and delete after a while...

Gail Platz · **Posted:** Sat Jun 09, 2012 12:38 am

I have a big folder where I just stick all bills and info in. I hate paper being lied around the house so at least that way I know I've got it all in one place. I've tried to go as paperless as possible as I much prefer email but there are still companies stuck in the past that think that sending me crap in the post is cost efficient and useful.

Annoyed Grunt · **Posted:** Sat Jun 09, 2012 10:02 am

Leave all the organising and that to the wife.

Bruce Rioja · **Posted:** Sat Jun 09, 2012 11:45 am

Annoyed Grunt wrote:

Leave all the organising and that to the wife.

Well, the last concubine was brilliant at sorting my stuff into order. This has just proved to be of excellent worth as I needed to lay my hands on some documents this very morning. Perhaps I really should learn to keep my documented ducks in a row in future. The only items of which I always know their whereabouts are my passport and Birth Certificate (both of which I've lost in the past causing no end of grief at the time).

TANGODANCER · **Posted:** Sat Jun 09, 2012 12:28 pm

Bruce Rioja wrote:

Well, the last concubine was brilliant at sorting my stuff into order.

My good lady takes it upon herself to organise everythng. A while back, the question occured to me: "What if?....So I asked her about it. When she showed me her file system I realised how totally organised she is. I'm a very sad hoarder of all sorts of useless crap, constantly surprising myself by re-"discovering" things I'd forgotten I had. Going on holiday, she takes charge of tickets, passports etc,and leaves me to do the important things: baggage, drinks and sandwiches etc (even than she usually has a mind-change and leaves me bag-watching whilst she goes to sort things out). All said, for filing, all I really need is a single folder with a sheet of paper saying "see wife". Sad, but true

P.O.S. · **Posted:** Sat Jun 09, 2012 1:14 pm

Finally decided to bin my KFC wage slips from over 10 years ago the other week. Used to keep everything as if it would come in handy at some point but it was just getting silly!

TANGODANCER · **Posted:** Sat Jun 09, 2012 1:18 pm

P.O.S. wrote:

Finally decided to bin my KFC wage slips from over 10 years ago the other week. Used to keep everything as if it would come in handy at some point but it was just getting silly!

My anthem. By the way, you wouldn't have a KFC wage slip handy from say, ten years ago, would you? :wink:

thebish · **Posted:** Sat Jun 09, 2012 1:24 pm

Annoyed Grunt wrote:

Leave all the organising and that to the wife.

which is fine until you discover she has cleared out your bank accounts and buggered off with the milkman... :wink:

Annoyed Grunt · **Posted:** Sat Jun 09, 2012 2:53 pm

thebish wrote:

Annoyed Grunt wrote:

Leave all the organising and that to the wife.

which is fine until you discover she has cleared out your bank accounts and buggered off with the milkman... :wink:

Oh, I do all my banking online......he's more than welcome to her :wink:

P.O.S. · **Posted:** Sat Jun 09, 2012 4:37 pm

TANGODANCER wrote:

P.O.S. wrote:

Finally decided to bin my KFC wage slips from over 10 years ago the other week. Used to keep everything as if it would come in handy at some point but it was just getting silly!

My anthem. By the way, you wouldn't have a KFC wage slip handy from say, ten years ago, would you? :wink:

Theyre the kind of anthems that end up with people becoming hoarders! Be careful otherwise youll end up with Stelios coming round telling you how to tidy up.

Unfortunately, all KFC and Blockbuster Video wage slips have been binned Im afraid. Should have kept one to look back now and again at the poultry (sic) wage and think back to the times the manager had us in there till 3am on a Saturday to clean fat out of the fryer wheels with cocktail sticks. Ahh they were the days.

TANGODANCER · **Posted:** Sat Jun 09, 2012 4:49 pm

P.O.S. wrote:

Theyre the kind of anthems that end up with people becoming hoarders! Be careful otherwise youll end up with Stelios coming round telling you how to tidy up.

My hoarding is a bit selective rather than random. I fill drawers and cupbords (at least those the wife allocates as mine) rather than boxes and bin bags. D.I.Y items are a different kettle. Rusty nails and screw are not unknown in the garage along with all sizes of bits of wood, half-filled paint tins etc (usually solid by the time I get round to using them ) etc. Yes.... I'm a confessed hoarder, but I'm getting better. Bullfight posters from 1985 are now on the "out" list. :wink:

Annoyed Grunt · **Posted:** Sat Jun 09, 2012 5:03 pm

TANGODANCER wrote:

P.O.S. wrote:

Theyre the kind of anthems that end up with people becoming hoarders! Be careful otherwise youll end up with Stelios coming round telling you how to tidy up.

My hoarding is a bit selective rather than random. I fill drawers and cupbords (at least those the wife allocates as mine) rather than boxes and bin bags. D.I.Y items are a different kettle. Rusty nails and screw are not unknown in the garage along with all sizes of bits of wood, half-filled paint tins etc (usually solid by the time I get round to using them ) etc. Yes.... I'm a confessed hoarder, but I'm getting better. Bullfight posters from 1985 are now on the "out" list. :wink:

You're not related to Edmund Trebus are you?

TANGODANCER · **Posted:** Sat Jun 09, 2012 5:13 pm

Annoyed Grunt wrote:

TANGODANCER wrote:

P.O.S. wrote:

Theyre the kind of anthems that end up with people becoming hoarders! Be careful otherwise youll end up with Stelios coming round telling you how to tidy up.

My hoarding is a bit selective rather than random. I fill drawers and cupbords (at least those the wife allocates as mine) rather than boxes and bin bags. D.I.Y items are a different kettle. Rusty nails and screw are not unknown in the garage along with all sizes of bits of wood, half-filled paint tins etc (usually solid by the time I get round to using them ) etc. Yes.... I'm a confessed hoarder, but I'm getting better. Bullfight posters from 1985 are now on the "out" list. :wink:

You're not related to Edmund Trebus are you?

Nah. More an Edmund Dantes me..

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