The Southland Firestorm: A Special Report : The Recovery : Retracing the Paper Trail

When a wildfire strikes, there may not be time to retrieve all the important documents that you have collected over a lifetime.

If important papers are destroyed, many of them--property deeds, birth certificates, marriage licenses, bank statements, canceled checks, among others--can be reconstructed sometimes by phone, but mostly by seeking help in writing or in person.

But take heed: Your paper chase sometimes can be frustrating--and deceptively costly.

You’ll probably have to listen and talk to automated voices and be put on hold again and again. And even though banks may waive service fees if you show that documents were destroyed by fire, you may have to put up an expensive bond to replace lost stock certificates. And copying fees of as much as $15 apiece for some government-issued records can mount quickly.

Still, it’s easier today, experts say, navigating the mega-electronic jungle--computer discs, microfilm, photocopying--that documents so much of how we spend, save and live than the ways Americans tried to salvage documents decades ago.

“Lost records are what disasters are made of,” said Harvey Saferstein, past president of the State Bar of California. “Our paperless society is scary to some people, but it’s easier now to rebuild your file because so many records can be recovered.”

The key is knowing who to call or write--and what to ask for.

Banks keep microfilm records of your statements and canceled checks for as long as seven years. Employers generally keep copies of paychecks and W-2 forms. Property deeds are usually no problem, either.

Your tax returns, too, are stored in a database. The Internal Revenue Service, which says you must keep copies of returns for the past three years, makes copies available at $4.25 per return (but free to victims of the recent wildfires).

The IRS offers victims of Southern California’s recent calamitous fires additional help: Agents have been sent to temporary centers of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), an IRS spokesman said.

And the IRS can expedite claims for losses not covered by insurance when victims ask to amend their returns filed last April. In other words, a taxpayer’s 1992 federal return can be amended to reflect unreimbursed losses suffered in 1993--if they occurred in locations designated by President Clinton as disaster areas. (Such a declaration by the President recently made Ventura and other Southern California counties eligible for federal emergency-relief funds.)

“This helps people who need money sooner, who can’t wait until next year when they file their 1993 return,” said Keith Kimball, a public affairs specialist in the agency’s Los Angeles office. Applicants should request Form 1040X, he said.

The most difficult documents to re-create include wills and unsecured promissory notes, said Clifford Cate, a Glendale probate attorney.

Wills can be easily restored, Cate said, when copies are kept by attorneys. If not, those whose wills are lost or destroyed must reconstruct them with at least two witnesses present, he said. If a promissory note is destroyed, Cate said, it can be all but impossible to prove who owes whom--and how much.

As for protecting those documents once you’ve re-created them, experts say nothing surpasses a safe-deposit box. The Bank of America’s monthly fees range from $20 to $75, although they are waived for holders of certain accounts, bank spokesman Charlie Coleman said.

When two Bank of America branches burned to the ground during the 1992 Los Angeles riots, Coleman said, the vaults at both stood intact. “The contents,” he said, “weren’t even touched.”

Moreover, one victim of an out-of-state fire recommends handing--in a sealed envelope every two years or so--an updated list of all account and telephone numbers for bank and credit cards, as well as an inventory of other documents, to a trusted relative, but not a spouse. “You and your spouse could die together in a fire,” she explained.

And attorney Saferstein strongly suggests--to show proof of purchase for insurance--keeping an inventory of not just important documents but all household items on film, videotape or paper and storing the documentation elsewhere for safekeeping.

“The real problem today isn’t so much reconstructing documents,” he said. “It’s claiming losses for everything else you own. Most people today don’t recognize how important that really is.”

Birth certificates, marriage licenses:

Ventura County Registrar/Recorder (or appropriate county where license or certificate was issued). Government Center, 800 S. Victoria Ave., Ventura.

Property tax invoices, receipts:

Ventura County Tax Collector. Government Center, 800 S. Victoria Ave., Ventura.

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Divorce decrees:

Ventura County Superior Court. Hall of Justice, 800 S. Victoria Ave., Ventura.

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Income tax returns:

(Federal): Internal Revenue Service (Taxpayer Service Division), 300 N. Los Angeles St., Los Angeles.

Call: (800) 829-3676 (to request forms) or (800) 829-1040 (general information).

To replace copies of returns: Ask for Form 4506 (normal fee: $4.25 per return, including W-2 forms and others attached to return, but waived for victims of recent wildfires).

To seek early relief by claiming losses not covered by insurance: Ask for Form 1040X, an application to amend last return filed (example: 1992 return to reflect losses in 1993).

(State of California): Franchise Tax Board (Attention: Rid Unit), P.O. Box 942857, Sacramento, CA 94257-0560.

Call: (800) 852-5711.

Ask in writing for Form FTB 1131 (request for copy of tax return). Include signature, Social Security number (also of spouse, if applicable), years requested. On envelope, write: “Southern California Fire.”

Note: State requires keeping returns only for past four years.

Fees: $5 per return

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Bank statements, canceled checks, savings certificates:

Your bank keeps copies of checking and savings records on film. Banks may waive fees for providing copies to victims of recent fires. Banks also generally issue temporary checks to replace those destroyed.

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Bank and credit cards:

Issuers generally offer replacement service via toll-free, 24-hour telephone. Applicants must provide account numbers and their Social Security number.

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Stocks and bonds:

Since most stock certificates are held by brokerages, replacement is usually not necessary. If stock certificates, however, are destroyed, contact the issuer of the stock or the transfer agent (a separate company, often a bank). In most cases, you must post a bond of generally 3% to 5% of the value of the certificate. (Example: For a $1,000 certificate, $30 to $50.) To replace most bonds, contact the issuer or transfer agent.

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Savings bonds:

To replace U.S. Savings Bonds or collect your cash and interest, contact:

U.S. Treasury Office, Bureau of the Public Debt, Box 1328, Parkersburg, W.Va. 62106-1328.

Call: (800) 366-3144.