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Please take few minutes extra to read this. Most important lesson

👉 This article was written by a woman after she lost her husband in an accident:

"After the sudden death of my husband, I would like to share a few lessons I've learned from my experience.

We always assume we will live long, but life is full of uncertainties.

My husband was an IT professional and I am a Chartered Accountant.

Being tech-savvy, my husband stored all his information on his laptop—from monthly bills to bank statements, investments, and even login IDs and passwords for various accounts. All of it was secured in a folder with a password, and the laptop itself was also password-protected. He used to create very complex passwords and changed them every 45 days. While he was alive, I could just call him for any password I needed. But now that he's gone, who do I ask?

We are careful about our business documents, but we often neglect personal documentation. We tend to delay these things out of laziness.

We think, “There’s always tomorrow.” But one bike accident one morning took away all our “tomorrows.”

My husband was only 33. His laptop and mobile phone were also completely damaged in the accident.

His savings and salary accounts had no nominee.

His life insurance had my mother-in-law listed as nominee, who had passed away 2 years ago.

But that was just the beginning. I didn’t even know the password to his email account, where all e-bills used to come.

I didn’t know which bills he paid manually and which ones were on auto-pay through his bank account.

He had recently changed jobs, and I didn’t know any of his new colleagues.

I had no clue about any pending payments or dues, or what reimbursements he was yet to claim.

We had bought a house with a home loan based on our combined incomes. The bank had recommended insurance on the loan, but we found it expensive and opted not to take it.

We had never imagined a situation where only one of us would be earning. Now, the EMI is a huge burden on me.

I realized I had a long battle ahead.

Since it was a road accident, I needed a death certificate, FIR, postmortem report, and different documents for different purposes.

Indemnity bonds, notary documents, no-objection certificates, etc.

Because we had bought the house jointly, claiming ownership was relatively easier.

But for other properties like land, car, bike—it was not easy to prove my ownership.

Getting a legal heir certificate is another battle altogether.

My entire life was shaken.

Now I understand I had neglected some very important life matters.

Even as a Chartered Accountant, I went through so many difficulties. I wonder how hard it must be for people who are not familiar with legal/financial documentation.

Now I understand the importance of a will. A few months ago, if someone had suggested making a will, I would have taken it lightly. But now, my life has completely changed.

So, if we make arrangements for a few essential documents before we go, at least in times of grief, our loved ones won’t have to worry...

Some Tips:

1. Review all your nominations: We often forget to update nominations after the death of a nominee. Many people don’t even have a nominee listed on their salary account.

Please check all your nominations:

Bank accounts

Fixed Deposits, NSC

Bank lockers

Demat accounts

Insurance (life, medical, vehicle, property, etc.)

Investments

PF, Pension forms, etc.

2. Passwords:

We have passwords for everything:

Email accounts

Bank accounts

Laptops

If your loved ones cannot access these in your absence, it creates huge problems.

So, make arrangements for your passwords to be accessible to your loved ones when you’re no longer around.

3. Investments:

We invest to save tax or achieve financial goals.

Do you maintain an Excel sheet of all your investments?

Can your loved one access that Excel sheet in your absence?

If it is also password-protected, again, a will or documented list of passwords becomes important.

If you’ve made investments with the help of a financial advisor, your family should know how to contact them.

Best practice: take your spouse along when you meet your financial advisor so they are aware of the process.

4. Make a Will

Yes, make a will today.

Don't laugh off this advice. If we had done this, things would have been so much easier with fewer documents.

5. Loans

Whenever you take a loan—home loan, car loan—evaluate all “What if…” scenarios.

Like:

What if I am not around tomorrow?

What if I lose my job?

What if one of our incomes stops?

Can you still pay the EMI?

If nothing else, take insurance on your loan so that your family doesn’t have to worry about basic needs like a home in your absence.

Help ensure your loved ones face the least possible inconvenience after you’re gone.

Remember: we never know what the future holds. But one golden rule to live by is:

“Be prepared for every situation in life.”

Never take life for granted.

Regularly maintain important documents like will, nominations, etc., for your loved ones’ peace of mind.

This article should be read and followed by everyone.

🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏

If you find this helpful, please share it with your relatives and friends.

👉👉👉

Special advice for senior citizens:

There’s usually nothing to hide in your phone, so why lock it with passwords, fingerprints, or patterns?

Please share this with all your groups and contacts to avoid unnecessary troubles later on.

🙏🏻 Thank you.