Records Disposal Checklist

Keeping track of your business’s paperwork and digital data can be an overwhelming responsibility.

A well built-out record retention policy is absolutely essential for office managers to organize all company records and know when to dispose of them. It is also important to ensure compliance with financial and legal requirements.

According to Erik Eckel from TechRepublic, "A data retention policy is the first step in helping protect an organization's data and avoid financial, civil and criminal penalties that increasingly accompany poor data management practices."

Record disposal is a particularly crucial component of record management as it could cause a costly legal situation if not executed properly.

Whether your records are paper or digital, need to be destroyed or retained in a storage facility, this checklist will guide you through a simple method to ensuring that you are disposing of records in a compliant and efficient manner.

Let's get started.

First, you must verify that the disposal is aligned with company policy by reviewing the record retention schedule. 

According to the multinational enterprise information management company Iron Mountain, 

"A records retention schedule is the cornerstone of an effective records management program."

Read about the fundamentals of a record retention schedule.

Manager who needs to approve the disposition

Records should be destroyed in an environmentally friendly manner. Both paper and microforms should be recycled where these facilities exist. 

The next step is to schedule a disposal date. 

The next step is to name each record and their various details in a disposition log.

Most of this information has already been gathered in the previous tasks; it's just a matter of consolidating them into a clear and well-organized spreadsheet.

The log is essential for you to gain approval from the records management department and/or senior management, in addition to the company's own record-keeping of record disposals! 

A disposition log must at least contain the following details:

Download our template disposition log (preview below) if you do not already have one tailored to your organization. 

Using the template below, email a manager asking them to approve your record disposal request. 

The next task - which is an approval task - must be completed by the manager. The manager has been automatically assigned to the task, thanks to role assignments.

When you are disposing of records that contain personal and/or confidential information, it is critical that you ensure compliance with state laws.

Review state data disposal laws here.

If you use an information management services company like Access or Iron Mountain, contact them and schedule a pick-up date that is in line with the disposal date you selected earlier in the checklist.

In the case that you handle transportation internally, contact the relevant department, inform them of the upcoming disposal and confirm pick-up and delivery to the storage or destuction facility. 

Sensitive and confidential records should only be conveyed in a closed and lockable vehicle.

State the address of where the records will be stored.

If you have a number of different archive locations, recording the location here will help you identify the storage facility of each batch in the future in the case that they need to be retrieved.

State the address of where the records will be destroyed.

Whether you are destroying the records onsite or offsite, it is important that you oversee the process to make sure the records are destroyed properly. 

The destruction of highly sensitive, personal or confidential material should be supervised by a representative of the organization or by another authorized agent if destruction has been contracted out.

Verify that the transportation service has successfully delivered the records to the storage facility. 

Once the records have been destroyed, you should receive a certificate of destruction from the service provider that performed the destruction on your behalf. 

The certificate is important because it is the company's guarantee to you, the customer, that all items have been properly destroyed. Some certificates will also explain the process that was used so you know exactly how your data was handled. 

If you are not receiving certificates of destruction from your current service provider, it could mean that they are failing to comply with strict rules that govern data destruction. As a result, you could be putting yourself at risk of data breaches.

Check with the appropriate department that the record disposal has been completed.

In the case that digital records were being disposed of, such as a set of old leads from your CRM system, you'll need to verify their deletion with a member of the IT department or someone who has an understanding of the digital record disposition process.

The last step is to record the record disposal!

Document the following in your record management system:

Record batch: {{form.Record_batch_(title)}}
Description: {{form.Description_of_the_records}}
Type: {{form.Are_the_records_paper_or_digital?}}

Date records arrived at the storage facility: {{form.Date_records_arrived_at_the_storage_facility}}

Who delivered the records to the storage facility? {{form.Who_delivered_the_records_to_the_storage_facility?}}

Storage facility address:
{{form.Address_line_1_(street_address)}}
{{form.Address_line_2_(apartment,_suite,_unit)}}
{{form.Address_-_City}}
{{form.Address_-_State}}
{{form.Address_-_ZIP_Code}}

The last step is to record the record disposal!

Document the following in your record management system:

Record batch: {{form.Record_batch_(title)}}
Description: {{form.Description_of_the_records}}
Type: {{form.Are_the_records_paper_or_digital?}}

Date of record destruction: {{form.Date_of_records_destruction}}

Who/what undertook the destruction?: {{form.Who/what_undertook_the_destruction?}}

• Erik Eckel - The Importance of Data Retention Policies
• State Archives and Records Authority of New South Wales - Destruction of Records
• Iron Mountain - Fundamentals of Records Retention Schedule
• National Archives - Frequently Asked Questions about Records Scheduling and Disposition
• National Archives - Disposal of Records
• Victorian-Auditor-General’s Office - Records Management Checklist
• Florida Department of State - Approved Methods of Destruction
• ZircoDATA - A Checklist to Upgrade Your Records Management Policy to Ensure Compliance
• Kevin Beaver - Data retention policies and procedures for SMBs
• New York State Archives - Retention and Disposition
• Margaret Rouse - Data Retention Policy
• West Coast Computer Recycler - The Importance of a Data Destruction Certificate
• Box-It - Why are Certificates of Destruction Important?

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