What happens to your Bitcoin should you suddenly die?

[Bit_Happy]

Being close to broke isn't fun, but at least I don't have to worry about anything important being lost or stolen. 
Still hoping to have this "problem" someday.

[colinistheman]

Just remember:
You could easily be hit by a truck today: No time to tell anybody about your secret stash of Bitcoin stamped on a piece of metal buried in your garden. No time to tell anybody the password to your bip38-encrypted paper wallet.

Where it is nice, that your Bitcoin are safe from the government and banks, it would be really sad, should you suddenly die and the Bitcoin are just lost, instead of supporting your own children.

So, I am less interested in theoretical ways to solve that problem, but more if somebody here actually did something to solve it.

You could also consider it like this:

It's a non-issue. If the money is lost, the money is lost. It's not as big of a deal as you might imagine because you can always add more decimal places to bitcoin. So basically losing bitcoin would just make existing bitcoin more valuable. Losing them is no one's loss really (except the guy who lost them)-- It's just everyone else's gain (in the form of deflation due to the lost coins).

I don't think it needs a solution. If we couldn't add more decimal places then we might need to be concerned with preserving the money supply, but because we can add more decimal places, it's not that big of a deal. And if you want your family to have access to your bitcoins in the event of your death, then make a will with multisignature keys given to the right people.

[calfries]

It is up to each Bitcoin user to provide the necessary info to a realtive or legal appointed person to access your wallet in the event of a death.
There is no difference with this or any info needed to access your regular bank account.

[bornil267645]

It's simple, give your all info about bitcoin to any of your family member or partner you trust most.And the better is write a note all of the process of bitcoin and keep it in a secure place.

[HCLivess]

Print it and put it in a safe. They will excavate it on your death by means of brutal physical power.

[abstream]

dead man switch has also been discussed - it would be activated if there is no activity(outgoing transactions?) for some amount of time...

Just remember:
You could easily be hit by a truck today: No time to tell anybody about your secret stash of Bitcoin stamped on a piece of metal buried in your garden. No time to tell anybody the password to your bip38-encrypted paper wallet.

Where it is nice, that your Bitcoin are safe from the government and banks, it would be really sad, should you suddenly die and the Bitcoin are just lost, instead of supporting your own children.

So, I am less interested in theoretical ways to solve that problem, but more if somebody here actually did something to solve it.

[JBits]

I use Nxt, and my Nxt priv. key is on the desk next to me.
A solution to this problem that is safer than my piece of paper is Multisig; you could require both your family, a lawyer, etc. to approve a transaction in order to get have the support them.

[abstream]

With NXT you have a single passphrase(brainwallet) as a login right?
You would actually have to split the passphrase and give the different parts to the family and the layer

I use Nxt, and my Nxt priv. key is on the desk next to me.
A solution to this problem that is safer than my piece of paper is Multisig; you could require both your family, a lawyer, etc. to approve a transaction in order to get have the support them.

[Reynaldo]

I was thinking about this with afriend quite some time ago. It would work like this: Each week/month/X period of time, you would have to do something "proof-of-alive" like answer and automated message and such, if not, then some saved information will be sent to anyone that you wanted to know that stuff.

[countryfree]

Let's put it simply. I haven't planned anything yet. My BTC would be definitely lost if I die tonight.

[franckuestein]

Let's put it simply. I haven't planned anything yet. My BTC would be definitely lost if I die tonight.

lol. haha
Could be an option but in my case I think that you can put it into your will at a notary as someone said or give all the information/pass to use it to family.

I'm going to thing about it, dunno what to do

[CoinCidental]

I use Nxt, and my Nxt priv. key is on the desk next to me.
A solution to this problem that is safer than my piece of paper is Multisig; you could require both your family, a lawyer, etc. to approve a transaction in order to get have the support them.

the family would have to be educated about what bitcoin is first in case either the lawyer dies or he scams the bitcoins which maybe worth several million doillars in say ,a decade from now .........

you need to make your family aware of btc,wallets and passphrases imo b4 its too late

a paper copy and instructions  in a sealed envelope in a  sd box  wouldnt hurt either  in case they forget or lose any part of the info required to "spend" the btc ........

[stellar1]

Will a paper wallet kept alongside the family gold (so only the next of kin sees it) solve this problem ?

Not if somebody steals your gold(and your paper wallet)

I guess we keep our family gold in a bank locker; maybe the bigger guys keep it in trustworthy vaults. Point is whoever receives your family gold gets the bitcoins too. And most (if not all) of the time the family gold passes into deserving hands.

[TrailingComet]

I have made special provisions for my private keys to be given to my next of kin

[Furio]

Good thread, same as inlog codes for all sorts of sites, am going to sit down with my wife sometime and explain everything

[Nerazzura]

assume that bad-misfortunes bitcoin is really dead at all.

People want a replacement Bitcoin. We can not close our eyes as well. There are thousands of altcoim, ready to replace bitcoin anytime.

One falls and a thousand spring up.

Where is worried?

You still invest too, right ??

If you are someone who is in awe of the implementation .cryptocoin plus love to see opportunities. This is certainly such a de ja vu, provided you already have experience of the failure of bitcoin.

[Wendigo]

I have an email on shedule for sending if I stay inactive for several months (aka dead), the email contains details like location and keys for a pendrive wallet, the pendrive is useless without the email and so is the email without the pendrive, I have yet to find a better way.

What if your email gets compromised and they steal your drive and bitcoins on it?

[CoinCidental]

what if the email gets eaten by spam filter and recipient never recieves it
all is left is a useless pendrive ......you need something better to guarantee reliability

[sirslayer]

i would keep a copy of it on a flash drive and have an attorney (with a 10 percent cut if he/she would take bitcoins or other assets ) handle it to who ever you want to pass it to.   make sure its worth it..     if not would it just get lost and would it ever be used?? can it be reprinted (mined) again if not used after a while?? 

[avw1982]

There would happen nothing.  Never thought about it. I don't have that much but it's something the think about.