Filing Schemes - what's the best way to file paperwork?

[Smamfa]

So, my lovely new filing cabinet and bookshelf arrived this week and I'm shovelling the paperwork out of my bedroom at a rate of knots. Now, what's the best way to file all this stuff? Do I go by genre and sub-genre (e.g. Financial -Insurance - Travel, Financial - Insurance - House) by supplier (e.g. HSBC, Norwich Union, Abel and Cole). Has anyone got a list I can follow? Whatever I think is sensible DH will be bound to ignore...

[Smamfa]

Must just be me then...

[OliviaMumsnet]

Bumping as I'd love to know.
I love a good filing system but don't have one at home

[SueW]

In a box. Either by annual year (Jan-Feb) or by tax year.

No other filing, just chuck it all in a box as it arrives.

You might want to keep insurance docs separate and put those places marked Home ins, Building Ins, Motor Ins, Life Ins in case you have to make a claim. But pretty much every other piece of paper that comes through the door you'll never look at again so why take the trouble to fine file?

[meander]

I have fairly broad ranging categories in the filing cabinet at home, each subdivided internally with a4 plastic sleeves (the ones that are only sealed on two sides) - you get to use labels, too, then .... or should that be ?

For example, we have Insurance (house/contents/mobile phone/strange policies that just don't go anywhere else, all foldered & labelled) pets (contains a copy of their insurance for reference, Banks - by bank, internally separated into correspondance, statements, etc) Financial, Legal, and so on.

It troubles me that I have as many things carefully labelled "Miscellaneous" as I do, though.

I shouldn't have started this, as soon as I talk about filing the crazy just comes spewing out of me.

[purpleturtle]

OK. I only have one filing drawer on the go, and it's arranged as follows:

Green files for child related stuff - School, Nursery, Trust Fund and 'Kids Info' (apparently that has swimming lesson dates in it!)

Red files for money stuff - a couple of different banks, tax credit, and income (for most people that would be payslips, I think)

Blue files for bills type stuff - Council tax, credit card statements, fuel bills, phone bills, water, and contents insurance

Yellow files which might be miscellaneous - car stuff, estate agents (we rent) and tax

Don't know if that helps, but at least you've seen my drawers, so to speak!

[needmorecoffee]

big pile on top of the computer?

[NaughtyNigel]

What you relly need is a very large bin.
Now, any paperwork that comes in you pile onto the computer table/desk.
After about 3 months anything left on the table that hasn't been looked at/actioned you slide into said large bin.
Simple
Done.

[Smamfa]

SueW I want to be like you. But I'm scared that I might need to find something in June 2011....

[policywonk]

I just have a hanging file for each 'thing' - phone bills, gas bills, kids' stuff, current account statements, cc statements, water bills, manuals for gadgets, tax-related stuff, vet-related material, TV license, mortgage correspondence, store cards... you get the picture... have about 25-30 files in all. It works for me, although DP claims that he is baffled by it.

[Smamfa]

forgot to mention, apparently it's my fault we can't find anything in this house. Even if it's his passport and it's still in the bag where he left it. My Fault.

[SueW]

But in June 2011 you will just drag out the box for 2008 (in our house I use Ikea boxes which are about the size of a large men's shoe box/walking boot box). It's not that much to look through, if I really need something e.g. last week something from tax office/govt dept to prove DH has been resident here for three years so his Brit Cit appl could go in).

Mind you, I'm not sure where my car ins is and I have to re-tax my car at the end of this month. Hoping I can do it online and not have to produce docs but I do like to keep my local post office going.

[Smamfa]

You're assuming of course I can remember at least which year it happened in. Genes are against me here, my mum thinks I was born in 1969 (not the case, & she's out by several years)

[purpleturtle]

Smamfa, you reminded me that I have an expandable wallet filing thing that has passports, birth certificates, driving licences and that kind of thing in it. Alphabetical, obviously.

[Bink]

I LOVE that this is in pedants' corner! I am only surprised that you don't seem to have anyone detail their Dewey-Decimal-inspired taxonomy in ghastly thoroughness.

My principle is relative size of the issue - ie amount of bits of paper generated by, and extent to which I will want to refer to that thing specifically, without wading through other stuff.

So, I have separate files for Taxes; Payslips; Pensions; Bank Accounts; and separate files for Each Child (Excluding Schools and Childcare); Schools; and, you guessed it, Childcare. There is a file for Mail-Order receipts/correspondence (Excluding Food). There is a file for Food Orders (veg box and Ocado).

Basically: if, for me personally, an area distinguishes itself as an issue, it gets a file (or, presumably in your case, a hanging thingy) to itself. You can do this just by putting your existing bits of paper in piles - I find it all distills itself by inherent logic then. Like sorting laundry.

[Oliveoil]

I have mine as follows:

one concertina style doodar, with sections for bills, house insurance, life insurance, mortgage, etc etc. Things are shoved in and then cleared out once a year. Make sure you shred them.

one A4 file for bank statements etc

one A4 file for all other bills - credit card, mobiles, catalogue etc etc

I know where everything is in this house and am quite a fusspot over my paperwork.

[SueW]

OMG Bink, I just couldn't do that.

OK, I admit to filing a little more than previously admitted.

All bank statements and anything tax-related e.g. share dividend info, P45/P60 go into an A4 ring binder.

But yesterday I needed an ins doc from last year and it was there, in the file marked 2007 as it had arrived in 2007 because we haven't renewed that policy yet this year.

I started a file at the beginning of this year for correspondence from DD's school as they seemed to be sending out so many letters. But halfway through the academic year, it feels like a waste of space and I will prob chuck most of it out with the next recycling collection and chuck the rest in the 2007 or 2008 box as appropriate.

[cremolafoam]

a large lever arch file for each bank account for statements
a big drawer for schoolandchild realted items-photos, forms. reciepts,scool reports etc
a hidden drawer with passports, purses with foreign currency,wills, brith and marriage certificates, passport sized photos

a filing cabinet divided into;
car 1
car2
mobile phones
landline and broadband
electric bills
fuel bills
rates and house maintenance
tax & tax credits& child benefit
national insurance
job CVs and applications/certificates/references

I also keep a big scrapbook of recipes/ ideas for the house/gardening things

[doggiesayswoof]

My system is pretty much like purpleturtle's ie colour coded files for different "categories"

Box file for bank statements.

I also have files for employment info for me and dh - contract/pension/payslips & P60. Find it useful to keep it separate from other money stuff.

Oh, I also have a big box file for receipts and instruction manuals and stuff like that.

My ideal is that every time I file a bill or a credit card statement I take the oldest one out and chuck it on the fire. That way the files never overflow. I don't really stick to this though...