Our financial lives are complicated. Where are your assets located? How are they invested? Where are your vital documents? What bills are on autopay? Are your beneficiary designations up to date? Who are the people that help you manage your financial life?
With an In Case of Emergency or ICE plan, you assemble key contact and financial account information in one place. An ICE plan guides someone who must act on your behalf—it is like a roadmap of your financial life. If you use a web-based personal financial management service, you have a great head start.
To create an ICE plan, prepare a list of:
- Bank accounts, credit card accounts, retirement accounts, brokerage accounts, and any other investments
- The name and phone number for anyone who helps you manage your financial life—banker, insurance agent, accountant, investment adviser
- Details about your lease or your mortgage—the name of your property management company or mortgage company
- Bills that are on automatic pay, with passwords to access the accounts or the master password if you use a password management service
For someone just starting out, your retirement account is likely your most valuable asset. As you prepare your ICE plan, review your beneficiaries on any retirement accounts as well as on any insurance or investment accounts. This step is essential when you experience life changes—marriage, divorce, partnership, parenthood. It is good practice to review your beneficiary designations periodically, because “life happens” and things change. Your beneficiary designations must be consistent with your will. Outdated designations and inconsistencies with your will can cause big problems.
Everyone, whether single, married, or in a partnership, should designate a key person. The key person should be extremely reliable and someone whom you trust implicitly. Examples are a spouse, a partner, a parent, a sibling, or a best friend. If you have not done so already, designate your key person as a durable power of attorney. With this designation, your key person will be able to step in and manage your finances if you are not able to do so yourself. Once you designate a durable power of attorney, let the key person know about your ICE file and plan. It is also a good idea to share your email password and other main passwords with your key person. Using a password management service simplifies this process because the key person needs only one login and one master password.
Pulling together your ICE file and ICE plan takes some effort. As with all emergency preparation, these tools are most effective if they are in place before an emergency happens. When you are just starting out, your financial profile may seem relatively uncomplicated. Over the next few years, however, your life—and your financial life—will evolve and become more complex.
