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Filing solution

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    Filing solution

    I seem to have collected a lot of paper over years, my old filing system is not working any longer (boxes containing 2 files per year, one for personal one for company related paper work) the study is exploding, even though I keep a lot scanned on the laptop, I have been through it all in the last few weekends and got rid of a lot, but what’s left is required e.g. there are stuff like receipts, policies, letters, signed contracts, insurances etc etc that I'd need to keep the original.

    Should I get a couple of filing cabinets from IKEA or such? Also what's the best way to file paper, suppose one must separate personal and company related, any I ideas?

    #2
    I bought a 2nd hand proper office steel 4-drawer filing cabinet in 1995 for about £10 or £20. It is about 3/4ths full.

    One drawer: everything to do with LtdCo.

    One drawer: personal stuff - everything financial, medical & legal.

    One drawer: academic, hobbies, interests & memberships

    One drawer: guarantees, non-claimable receipts that need to be kept for warranties, huge Jiffy bags each holding one year of company paperwork.

    It is the tool designed for the job and it does it very well.
    My all-time favourite Dilbert cartoon, this is: BTW, a Dumpster is a brand of skip, I think.

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      #3
      WHS

      Buy one at auction for very little money

      Comment


        #4
        Originally posted by RichardCranium View Post

        I bought a 2nd hand proper office steel 4-drawer filing cabinet in 1995 for about £10 or £20. It is about 3/4ths full.

        One drawer: everything to do with LtdCo.

        One drawer: personal stuff - everything financial, medical & legal.

        One drawer: academic, hobbies, interests & memberships

        One drawer: guarantees, non-claimable receipts that need to be kept for warranties, huge Jiffy bags each holding one year of company paperwork.

        It is the tool designed for the job and it does it very well.


        Do you use a little penknife for sharpening your quill pens too?

        I scan practically everything and shred the paper. (Not one thing that can identify me goes in the rubbish.)

        The handful of certificates and suchlike needed in hardcopy all fit in one inch-thick plastic case.
        Work in the public sector? Read the IR35 FAQ here

        Comment


          #5
          Originally posted by OwlHoot View Post
          Do you use a little penknife for sharpening your quill pens too?
          No, but I do use a chisel to sharpen the pencils I use for DIY and craft work.

          Originally posted by OwlHoot View Post
          I scan practically everything and shred the paper. The handful of certificates and suchlike needed in hardcopy all fit in one inch-thick plastic case.
          Suit yourself. I am a Luddite and do not trust computers.

          Also, I find I can retrieve paperwork from the filing cabinet without having to search. Also, I do not have to put indexing marks against the documents, I just drop them in the right folder.

          Also, when taking paperwork to the bank for bank accounts, to the DWP or council for benefits, to interviews for id and qualification checks and so on, I find the originals are easier to deal with than copies and it must be more convenient and 'green' than having to print out copies of the originals to take.

          As for identity theft issues, yes a burglar will pinch the valuable paperwork. They will also have away your computer. We will both be seriously inconvenienced.

          In the event of a fire, we will also be in a similar position. A paper-filled, steel filing cabinet is probably going to survive about the same length of time as your PC. If either are destroyed, the consequences are the same. (Actually, I suspect my paperwork would stand the better chance of surviving.)

          I am not bothered about the floorspace. The Missus & I always have a room as a dedicated office. Having a filing cabinet is tidy and in the very unlikely chance of a visit from the taxman, just adds to the overall impression that I am legitimately claiming for the use of that room.

          For the volume of paperwork involved, I believe a manual system is cheaper, faster, greener, more secure and more efficient than a computerised one.

          PS: I have implemented EDRMS in the past so I do know what is involved, I just can't be arsed with all the faffing of scanning and indexing that goes with it.
          My all-time favourite Dilbert cartoon, this is: BTW, a Dumpster is a brand of skip, I think.

          Comment


            #6
            <rant deleted>

            Sorry, zamzummim. I've probably just f**ked up your thread.
            Last edited by RichardCranium; 13 December 2009, 18:49. Reason: Rant no longer required
            My all-time favourite Dilbert cartoon, this is: BTW, a Dumpster is a brand of skip, I think.

            Comment


              #7
              I scan practically everything and shred the paper. (Not one thing that can identify me goes in the rubbish.)
              Can't quite see it myself if it is just a name and address on an envelope but I know a policeman with experience of fraud and that is exactly what he told me to do.
              bloggoth

              If everything isn't black and white, I say, 'Why the hell not?'
              John Wayne (My guru, not to be confused with my beloved prophet Jeremy Clarkson)

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by xoggoth View Post
                Can't quite see it myself if it is just a name and address on an envelope but I know a policeman with experience of fraud and that is exactly what he told me to do.
                If I wanted the names and addresses of IT contractors, I'd post a job ad on jobserve, and wait for the cvs to fly in (often including Date of Birth). No need to rummage around dustbins on the off-chance..
                Speaking gibberish on internet talkboards since last Michaelmas. Plus here on Twitter

                Comment


                  #9
                  Originally posted by RichardCranium View Post
                  As for identity theft issues, yes a burglar will pinch the valuable paperwork. They will also have away your computer. We will both be seriously inconvenienced.

                  In the event of a fire, we will also be in a similar position. A paper-filled, steel filing cabinet is probably going to survive about the same length of time as your PC. If either are destroyed, the consequences are the same. (Actually, I suspect my paperwork would stand the better chance of surviving.)
                  I scan all my stuff and to mitigate the risk of fire/theft/loss of laptop all my documents are sync'd with dropbox to multiple machines on the fly. Plus I can access them from any web enabled machine. As for security, each file is individually encrypted and also stored on a truecrypt encrypted volume, even my OS's are truecrypt encrypted also.

                  I can have all my documents downloaded to a new machine within minutes, so I think I've got the theft/fire/loss angles covered

                  Comment


                    #10
                    I use a 2nd hand 2-drawer filing cabinet. Bought in 1999 for about £20.
                    There are loads for sale in second hand furniture shops. They are a bit heavy but you do not tend to move them about very much.
                    My office is upstairs so we did have to get it up the stairs but they do move up and down carpeted stairs quite easily on their side. Especially going down stairs !

                    It's definitely the best way of keeping paper stuff.
                    For the company year end accounts etc I have one box filling box for each year and then just keep nine years worth.

                    For shredding I use a 2.5 foot high Fellows shredder. It was about £200 but does the job very well.

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