I need your opinion - Do I need to shred everything or can I just toss it in the recycle box?

I've done everything from shredding myself, dropping it off at 'bulky items' day, or taken it to the beach to burn. But never do I just throw it away in recycle. Also, you should hang on to all the records of her estate for at least 5 - 7 years. You never know when you have to go back and dig something up for the IRS - or even amend something.

Sometimes paperwork is lost in a natural disaster like a flood or fire. It’s hard sorting these things out.

We had a mess after Hurricane Katrina. So much was lost. Not just in our homes. Mom’s house had nine feet of water, but the funeral home flooded and I couldn’t even get a copy of daddy’s death certificate from them.

So I've been checking the web for hacks and one simple but brilliant idea is to soak the papers in a 5 gallon bucket or a laundry tub until they are soft, if you ball them up when wet they should be pretty much impossible to flatten once dry. This actually sounds kind of fun!

cwillie, ah the good old shredding machine.... once I start, it is so hard to stop :P

I agree with JoAnn, we do need to keep certain papers for a number of years just in case the IRS comes knocking on your door. Along with bank statements, etc.

When my folks had passed, I found income taxes going back to the 1940's. My gosh, how did people survive on such low incomes. Ok, I know, bread was only dime. I also found all of Dad's paystubs from 45 years at the company where he had his career. I did keep the settlement papers for the houses they had bought, along with the closed mortgages.

My folks had already had their credit frozen, so I didn't need to worry about that. I froze my credit about 8 years ago. That way, no one can apply for credit under my name, or buy a car or apply for a house loan.

I haven't gone paperless, I still don't have the warm fuzzes when it comes to storing info in a cloud. All my financials came to the house via the mailman, and goes into 3-ring binders.

Thanks everyone. I guess I should rethink the blue box plan and commit myself to shredding a little at a time, starting with the oldest stuff first.
This is why I'm converting everything possible of my own accounts to paperless.

Check with your local law enforcement and see if they have free shredding available.

Our city does that 2xs annually for safely disposing of documents.

It is better to error on the side of safety, unless you are a criminal mind you just don't know what makes their activities easier.

Before our city offered shredding services for free our elderly neighbor died and her children had flown in to deal with everything, we used our BBQ grill to burn all of her papers for them. It only took a couple of days and made some lovely ash for the compost pile.

The most important thing to do is send a copy of the death certificate to each and every credit card and other debts....close those accounts. Also, send copies to each of the 4 credit reporting bureaus....request the accounts be flagged and permanently closed.

you would not be liable if someone steals her identity... but clearing up the mess within settling the estate can get it be a big hassle.

shredding all that is a good plan...but, be aware that many people have identity theft after the obituary is published. Millions of people with all their identification are in database on the dark web...for sale.

6 years of tax records from the last filing in Canada

As others have said be very rigorous about not leaving personal info where it can be stolen.

Can you buy a BBQ and do some burning when the weather gets better?

here's a link to some ideas
https://www.polaroidfotobar.com/burn-paper-documents-at-home/
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I would shred it. Many places will shred things for $5 a box.

Having said that, the chances of someone digging through your trash to get anything of value is low. Why would they? They can buy your personal information online for a few dollars. Much easier and cleaner than digging through someone's trash.

People don't really get how freely available their PI like their SSN is. It didn't even need to be stolen. It wasn't that long ago that the government published people's SSNs on various websites. It's best to assume all your information is freely available and to shield yourself accordingly.

Yes, shred anything that has her SS# on it or insurance/Medicare IDs. Checks yes, bank info yes. Utility bills not so much.


Keep tax records for 5 years.

Keep the last year of bills. Just in case someone says they haven't been paid. Actually, don't think they can come back to u after Probate.

Keep bank Statements for the last year.

Of course keep anything that had to do with probate.

I have kept Medicaid Info especially paperwork saying the lean was satisfied. And the sale of Moms house. Realtor and Title info.

I kept the five years of statements especially those that I wrote checks from. I have kept receipts to back up checks I wrote for myself.

Yes. Probate is done. My brothers excepted their inheritances but I feel that u never know. Mom has been gone 2 yrs. In another 3yrs I will probably get rid of most of the paperwork. I have her down to a storage box. Her whole life in a storage box.

IDK what I'm worried about exactly, other than perhaps somebody assuming her identity or using something to identify those of us still living, but I've been weeding out everything that might have our names included as beneficiaries. I wish we had a mobile shredding service available locally, the local Habitat Re-Store has a sign advertising free shredding but when I asked I was pointed to a shredder only sightly larger than the one I have by my desk.🙄

My solution when we lived on a farm was the good old fire pit, but my town neighbours wouldn't appreciate that.

I believe paperwork that shows a social security number should be shredded. If papers are from a closed account I don't think you need to shred that. We would go to the recycling center our town had and tear in 2 pieces of paper. The dumpster was huge and attended by many so very quickly what we threw out was covered over.

If you are assured from anyone advising you as to any possible need of paperwork for tax implications etc. You would know what might have to be saved but it sounds as though there might not be that need.

Great idea about your category suggestion. You would need to contact AC staff. They are good about emails regarding responses but impossible to speak to.

I had a bunch of papers too, 4 estates worth. I called a mobile shredding service and in an hour it was all gone!

Oh gosh, I don’t know but I suppose if you are in doubt I would shred. What specifically are you concerned about? Identity theft?