Household Emergency Binder Spreadsheet

About this template

This emergency binder is a household spreadsheet that records where your important documents and essentials are kept, who to ask about them and when they expire. It is for families who want the person who has to step in to find what they need quickly, without reading everything.

Please read: This is a tracker tool only, not financial, tax, legal, medical or any other professional advice or advisory service. It records and calculates what you enter; you are solely responsible for checking all figures, rates, dates and results and for every decision you make. By purchasing, downloading or using it, you accept these terms (your statutory consumer rights are not affected).

Where it is, not what it is

This file holds where things are, not what is in them. There is deliberately no place for an account number or a policy number. Instead you write the drawer, the folder or the person who has it, which makes it a document locator rather than a store of sensitive details.

An expiry tracker with days left

Passports, vehicle inspections, insurance, an EpiPen, the fire extinguisher: each gets an expiry date and a count of days left. Anything within 60 days is counted, and anything already expired is counted and shown in red, so a passport expiry is seen in good time.

Kept current

A household binder nobody has opened in two years is full of wrong phone numbers. Every entry has a last checked date, and anything not checked in a year is counted on the dashboard.

• 150 entries across ten sections, so the right thing is quick to find
• Where it is, who to ask, and the detail for each entry
• Expiry dates with days left, expiring within 60 days counted
• Already expired, counted and in red
• Last checked, and what has gone stale
• A Tasks tab for everything the main tab does not cover, and a dashboard reading all of it

Five tabs and a filled example

Start Here, Setup, Emergency, Tasks and Dashboard. The example copy holds 32 entries across ten sections, with five things expiring inside 60 days, one already out of date and two not checked in a year. The blank copy is ready for your household, and the Start Here tab walks you through setup in a few minutes.

Do not put passwords, account numbers or policy numbers in this file. It is built to record where things are kept, not what they contain.

Works with

• Microsoft Excel 2016, 2019, 2021 and Microsoft 365, on Windows and Mac, and LibreOffice
• Google Sheets with a free Google account. The Google Sheets version is a real workbook you take a copy of, not a PDF with a link in it.
• No dynamic arrays, no macros, no add-ins and no subscription

What you download

• Two Excel workbooks: the filled example and a blank one
• The instruction guide, with one-click links to the Google Sheets versions (filled and blank)
• The terms of use as a PDF

Your files are ready the moment payment clears, for personal and business use on your own devices. Please do not share or resell them. Questions? Use our contact page and we will help.

Frequently asked questions

Does it work in Excel and Google Sheets?

Yes. The Excel workbooks run on Excel 2016 or later on Windows and Mac, and the instruction guide has one-click links to copy the Google Sheets versions with a free Google account.

Should I put account numbers or passwords in it?

No. It is built to record where things are kept, such as a drawer, a folder or a person, not what they contain. There is deliberately no place for account or policy numbers.

Does it warn me about expiring documents?

Yes. Each entry can have an expiry date with the days left. Anything within 60 days is counted, and anything already expired is counted and shown in red.

How many entries does it hold?

150 entries across ten sections.

How do I know the binder is up to date?

Every entry has a last checked date, and anything not checked in a year is counted on the dashboard.