Getting rid of items that are no longer needed is a key strategy to getting organized. However, sometimes it can be difficult to know what to toss when it comes to paperwork like insurance policies. These are the items that we tend to hang on to, citing "what if" scenarios.
The folks at Freedom Filer, a "self-purging" document storage system, say that it is generally alright to get rid of old insurance policies if you've received a new one, unless one of their following circumstances apply to you:
- If you have a claim pending, hang on to the expired policy and any related paperwork.
- If you think there may be a claim filed in regards to something that happened during the life of your old policy, keep the policy documents.
- For businesses, it doesn't hurt to keep all policy paperwork through the life of your business.
*Remember, always check with your CPA or attorney about what legal paperwork to keep and for how long.