Pictured: Jayne Smith

With many people having received computers, iPods, cameras and other electronic goods this Christmas, legally protecting the sentimental and private information held on them after you die is not something that immediately springs to mind.

Here, Jayne Smith, a wills, probate and trusts solicitor at Nottingham-based law firm Rothera Dowson, explains the pitfalls of not giving enough thought to what will happen to your online legacy, and the steps you can take to avoid trouble. 

If you ever have a think about what happens to your belongings and assets should the worst happen to you, it's always easiest to think about the more tactile things. The house, the car and items like jewellery are usually the most obvious. 

However, would you give any thought to what happens to your digital music collection? To any online bank accounts, digital photographs, personal or sentimental documents, passwords or collection of smartphone apps?

Quite simply, not enough people do. Digital assets, worth thousands of pounds in many cases, are rendered lost or unusable, as families and partners are unable to access anything without passwords and login details being left for them - even if they know the digital asset exists. 

It is said that the UK's digital music collections are worth more than £900 million alone, with a recent survey finding that 45 per cent of those polled had a collection worth more than £100, and ten per cent worth more than £1,000. 

Even when people do consider what will happen to their digital assets, they sometimes include passwords and access information within the will itself - forgetting that it may become a public document when it goes to probate or is found by the wrong person. Meaning that, for all their careful planning, they may as well have not kept them protected at all. 

This has led to some instances of people logging into accounts they are not entitled to, and effectively stealing those assets before the persons entitled can access them. 

There are companies available to keep this information until your death for a monthly fee. However, these can also be hacked into, and they too may need verification information that would need to be stored somewhere else anyway. 

The most reliable solution I can advise would be to keep a list of your passwords, login details and PIN numbers in a sealed envelope for your solicitor to keep with your will. The only thing to bear in mind is to keep the list up to date. 

It might seem odd that keeping all of your high-tech assets safe for your family involves such a low-tech solution - a letter in a safe. But, conversely, it is the best way to make sure that only the people you choose can access your digital information, with the least amount of hassle at such a difficult time for them. 

It's important to remember that your digital assets can be worth just as much or more than some of the more tangible items that people take the time to list in their wills. With more of our time and resources tied up in the internet and computers than ever, it's only right to put the same thought into how we pass on our digital lifestyle. 

For more wills, probate and trust legal advice from Rothera Dowson, visit www.rotheradowson.co.uk or call 0800 124 4012.