Don't panic if documents are lost

File a complaint, place newspaper announcements and approach the authority concerned for a duplicate

Last month, Congress chief Sonia Gandhi lost tax-free bonds of Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC) worth Rs 10 lakh. She informed IRFC about and requested it for duplicate bond certificates. Also, a public announcement was placed in newspapers, informing the public about the loss.

This is the procedure if one misplaces important documents such as bond or share certificates, life insurance policies, property papers and tax papers. While saving documents in a bank locker or digitising these is advisable, these processes aren't followed by many.

Follow the right procedure
If you lose a document, first file a police complaint. Second, place announcements in an English newspaper and a vernacular one circulated in the state where the document has been lost. Third, approach the authority concerned and apply for a duplicate copy. You will also have to execute an indemnity bond and get it affirmed before a notary, undertaking to protect and indemnify the company in case a claim is made by any other person. In some cases, you might have to pay a fee for a duplicate, as well as stamp fee. These vary from state to state.

Though the cost of placing a newspaper announcement might, at times, exceed the value of the security, this is a technical requirement, says consumer activist Jehangir Gai, adding unless this is done, one might not be able to secure a duplicate.

After the public announcement, if anyone has any claim to the document, it should be conveyed to the issuer within 15 days. In some cases, banks or housing finance companies misplace the documents of those who take loans from them. The borrower discovers this only after the loan has been repaid and the lender has to release the documents.

Though misuse of these documents isn't common, as most documents have individual names, without original documents, it is difficult to claim proceeds when the investment matures or for nominees to claim proceeds in case of insurance policies.

Approach the right authority
If you lose share certificates, you have to approach the company's registered office, even if it is in a different city or location. If you lose property documents, you have to approach the sub-registrar of that city. If a Kisan Vikas Patra is misplaced, one has to approach the local post office. And, if your insurance policy or bank fixed deposit certificate is lost, you have to approach the branch servicing your policy or in which you have a fixed deposit.

Sumeet Vaid of Ffreedom Financial Planners says while most people file police complaints and place newspaper announcements, they don't follow up with issuers to secure a duplicate, a reason behind the substantial unclaimed money in bank fixed deposits and insurance policies.

If a bank has misplaced your papers, you also have the right to seek compensation for deficiency of service and harassment, says V N Kulkarni, debt counsellor, Abhay.

In 2011, after a bank had misplaced property documents, the banking ombudsman had stated it had to issue a duplicate copy and bear all the costs required, including those for placing announcements in newspapers. The bank was also asked to pay Rs 25,000 as compensation to the complainant. In case property papers are misplaced by a bank, the borrower should also approach the registrar of co-operative societies and give it in writing. This will ensure there is no forgery in future. In such cases, the complainant can also approach the consumer court.

Protecting your documents

Many of us keep important documents in safe deposit lockers. But this means every time we need the documents, we have to visit the bank branch concerned. A safer and easier way to protect documents is to digitise these. Record management companies offer facilities to store both physical and digital documents for Rs 200-2,000. Such companies create separate accounts for each customer, with a login ID and password. Storage spaces vary, depending on the package. Customers can also ask for physical documents to be delivered to them. Some banks, too, offer this service, albeit for select customers. The biggest advantage of digitising documents is you need not worry about carrying copies of these with you. With most having access to the internet through smartphones and tablets, we can access the documents anywhere, anytime. And, since these files are encrypted, they are secure. Many of us laminate important documents to protect them from physical damage. "When you submit a photocopy, it is always verified against the original. In some cases if the original is laminated, the authority might refuse to accept it," says consumer activist Jehangir Gai.