In 2026 the UK is close to cashless, which is precisely why cash matters in an emergency. A power cut, a payment network outage or a cyber attack on a bank takes contactless, chip-and-pin and cash machines down together. The government's Be Ready list asks for cash in notes and coins and printed copies of important documents. This guide says how much and which.
Cash
Why small notes
In a payment outage, shops that stay open run out of change in an hour. A £50 note is useless; five £10 notes buy five rounds of essentials. Coins matter for parking meters, launderettes and vending machines that still accept them.
Where to keep it
Somewhere you will remember and a burglar will not check first: inside the document folder, in a labelled tin in the kit box, or in a sealed envelope taped inside a kitchen cupboard. Not the bedside drawer, the freezer or under the mattress, which are the first three places anyone looks. Check your contents insurance limit for cash at home; most policies cover a few hundred pounds.
Documents
After a flood or house fire the second-hardest thing, after the loss itself, is proving who you are and what you owned. A single folder of copies, kept in the kit and duplicated in the cloud, shortens that by weeks.
How to store them
One waterproof folder
A zipped A4 document wallet or a dry bag. Keep it with the kit, or in the grab bag if you live in a flood risk area.
Originals in a fireproof bag or safe
A fire-resistant document bag costs £15 to £25 and protects passports, certificates and deeds for long enough for a fire service to arrive.
Digital copies in the cloud
Photograph everything into a folder on Google Drive, iCloud or OneDrive. Share it with one trusted family member. Encrypted cloud storage is far safer than a USB stick that is in the same house as the fire.
Review annually
Renewals, new policies, new medication. Do it with the autumn kit check.
Help others
The government guidance makes a quiet point worth repeating: consider printing or copying documents for people who cannot prepare themselves. An older relative or neighbour who does not use a smartphone will have no backup of anything. Twenty minutes with their paperwork and a photocopier is a genuine kindness, and it may be the most useful preparedness thing you do this year.
Your phone as a wallet backup
Add your emergency contacts and medical information to your phone's lock screen (Medical ID on iPhone, Emergency information on Android). Paramedics look for it. Consider the privacy trade-off; for most people the benefit outweighs it. Keep a photo of your insurance documents in a favourites album so you can find it quickly under stress.
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Common questions
How much emergency cash should I keep at home?
The government guidance says an amount based on your household's essential needs, in both notes and coins. For most households £50 to £100 covers three days of bread, milk, fuel and a taxi. Larger families or people who rely on a car may want more. Keep it in small notes; a shop with no card machine and no change cannot break a £50.
Is cash at home covered by insurance?
Most UK home contents policies cover a limited amount of cash, often £250 to £500, against theft or fire. Check your policy. Keep emergency cash somewhere unobvious but easy for you to reach, not in a bedside drawer.
Should I keep the original documents or copies?
Copies in the kit and grab bag, originals in a fireproof document bag or a safe at home. Photograph everything to a cloud account as a third layer; if the phone and the paper are both lost, the photos are not.
What if I do not have a printer?
Photograph each document and print the images at a supermarket photo kiosk or library for pennies, or handwrite the key details: policy numbers, claim lines, NHS numbers, passport numbers. The numbers matter more than the pretty copy.