Pre-Deployment Family
Readiness Checklist
Finances
[ ] Will your bank accept your power of attorney to
conduct business on a joint account?
[ ] Do you have access to the account where the soldier’s
direct deposit is made? If not, is there an allotment/
automatic transfer set up into your account to cover
monthly expenses?
[ ] Do you have a plan for how the deployed soldier will
access funds while deployed, and how he/she will
communicate those transactions to you?
[ ] Do you know how to balance the checkbook?
[ ] Do you have enough checks? Do you know how to
order more checks?
[ ] Do you know the bank name, address, phone, and
account numbers of your bank and investment accounts?
Do you have legal authority to conduct transactions on all
accounts?
[ ] Do you have a list of all your credit cards, and can you
physically account for every card?
[ ] Do you know who to contact if an allotment or bank
transfer does not arrive in your account?
[ ] Do you have a list of recurring bills, credit card
balances, and due dates each month?
[ ] Do you know how the deployment will affect the
soldier’s paycheck (increase or decrease)?
[ ] Do you know the location of federal and state tax
returns for the last four years?
[ ] Do you know where any titles or deeds for real estate
or automobiles are located?
Family Documents
[ ] Do you know the location of each family member’s
birth certificate? Your marriage certificate?
[ ] Do you know the location of any adoption papers,
divorce decrees, custody papers, or court orders?
[ ] Do you know the location of citizenship records if any
family member was born outside the U.S.?
[ ] Where are the life insurance policies kept?
[ ] Do all the children of age 10 or older have ID cards?
Will they expire while the soldier is deployed? Are all the
children in DEERS?
[ ] Do you know the location of the TRICARE cards for all
dependents?
[ ] Do you have a list of reputable babysitters and child
care providers?
[ ] Do you know the location of immunization records for
all family members?
Legal
[ ] Do you have general power of attorney? If it is a
limited, does it cover all the areas in which you may be
required to act on your spouse’s behalf? Where is it
located?
[ ] Do you have a will? Does your spouse have a will? Is
your will up-to-date and accurately reflect your desires for
guardianship of minor children? Do you know where they
are located?
House
[ ] Do you have a duplicate set of keys for the house?
[ ] Do you have a financial plan for emergency repairs?
[ ] Do you have a trusted maintenance person to conduct
home repairs?
[ ] Do you have home/renters insurance? If so, where is
it, and how can you contact the company?
[ ] Do you know how to cut off the water, electricity, and
gas lines in case of emergency?
[ ] Do you know where the breaker box is located and
how to reset breakers?
[ ] Do you know where the home mortgage papers are
located?
[ ] Do you have a copy of the lease agreement? Will it
run out while the soldier is deployed?
Car
[ ] Do you have a duplicate set of keys for the cars?
[ ] Do you have a financial plan for emergency repairs?
[ ] Do you know a trusted mechanic for car maintenance
and repairs?
[ ] Do you know when to change the oil and make the
next scheduled maintenance check?
[ ] Are the registration and proof of insurance papers
physically located in each vehicle?
[ ] Where is the car insurance policy located, and do you
know how to file a claim?
Other
[ ] If you are on the housing list, does housing have a
phone number where you can be contacted?
[ ] Do you have a pet care plan if you need to leave your
home during your spouse’s deployment?
[ ] Do you know the phone numbers for Army Community
Services, Red Cross, and Family Advocacy?
[ ] Do you have the emergency phone numbers posted
near a telephone?
[ ] Do you have a fire escape plan, and have you
rehearsed it without the help of the deploying soldier?
[ ] Do the children’s’ teachers know that the soldier is
deploying so that they can better understand the moods
and behavior changes in the children?
[ ] Do you know the phone numbers for the unit’s rear
detachment Commander and NCO in charge, and the
rear detachment chaplain?
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