Filing solution

[OwlHoot]

... There. How did you like that on a Sunday morning? Just because ministrone & dog's heinous have been trolling me like loons, doesn't mean you have to join in. ...

Crikey, don't take it so much to heart!

OK I'll admit I'm a teeny bit jealous of people with enough room for a separate, office, filing cabinet and all, and maybe that came across.

But I still reckon that these days a scanner and shredder is far more useful and effective than a filing cabinet (although admittedly it takes a bit more time to process papers).

and no, I don't scan supermarket receipts and suchlike. I wish to God I *was* more anal - Might be able to figure out WTF half my money goes!

[RichardCranium]

Crikey, don't take it so much to heart!

Done. Rant deleted. You were on the receiving end of a response that belonged to a couple of twats.

OK I'll admit I'm a teeny bit jealous of people with enough room for a separate, office, filing cabinet and all, and maybe that came across.

There is a cost. We always have to take on a property with one more bedrooms than we need. But back in Ye Olde Days it used to be worthwhile doing that. It's not really worthwhile any more (£2 allowance a week for a room is taking the piss - where can you rent a room for £8 per month?).

But I still reckon that these days a scanner and shredder is far more useful and effective than a filing cabinet (although admittedly it takes a bit more time to process papers).

and no, I don't scan supermarket receipts and suchlike. I wish to God I *was* more anal - Might be able to figure out WTF half my money goes!

Another bit of software I find useful is Quicken. I don't think it has been available for some years, but others are available incuding an open source offering. You log every transaction that goes through your accounts (business and personal). When the statements come in, you reconcile the transactions against the statement. Standing orders and direct debits and routine transactions are all automatically done. Benefits:

- you know your balances at any time, including a good guess into the future.
- you get to see the errors on your statements. Cheques tend to be entered wrongly these days for some reason. And I query about one cash withdrawal a year.
- when you get "WTF was that??? " entries on your statement, you have a corresponding explanation in the software ("oh, yeah, that, I remember now ")

When you then want to do VAT returns it makes life easier. It also helps with "WTF does my money go?" as everything is categorised. When you see questions on CUK such as "How much do you pay for gas and leccy?" you can look back and see whether you are being shafted too.

[SantaClaus]

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.

Yep, everything gets shredded here too. Take note MrYouKnowWho (TM)

Does anyone actually trust their council to recycle their credit card bills, etc?

[bullseye]

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.

This is me just checking, Does HMRC accept the scanned receipts? Any linkys?