In Australia each state has a retention and disposal schedule that says
destruction certificates should be retained for X years after last action
(some organisations I know keep them permanently). These can then be
destroyed after that time/or retained (whichever is in your schedule). As
to what was in the bin the only thing you can do is reiterate that this is
for non corporate records and for such docs as drafts etc that have no
significant corporate use. I agree that there is no way of telling but you
have to ask yourself is it really worth your time to establish what was in
the bin. I would just record the serial number of the bin and leave it at
that and to the workmates. You could put a note above the bin to say what
can/can't go in.

A very interesting topic

On Wed, Nov 12, 2014 at 8:53 AM, Blake Richardson <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:

> When I was writing my book "Records Management For Dummies", I wrote about
> "Certificates of Destruction", which I am an advocate for - the technical
> editor (and friend), was not in agreement with me about the value of the
> COD (and I understand and respect his position).  However, I believe COD's,
> although they do not specifically list contents, show that the organization
> is doing their best to securely dispose of information, whether they are
> official company records (on the retention schedule), content of business
> value or otherwise.
>
> Thanks
>
> Blake E. Richardson, CRM, CIP
>
> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
> From: Steward, David <[log in to unmask]>
> Date: Tue, Nov 11, 2014 at 2:42 PM
> Subject: Re: Cert of Destruction
> To: [log in to unmask]
>
>
> Jeanne, my opinion is that you ask a valid question.  What value, if any,
> is provided by those "generic" certificates?  I use the term "generic" to
> define certificates of destruction that cannot be connected to specific
> documents.  I believe there is a value.  It is third-party evidence that
> you are performing a secure service.  Invoices might provide similar value,
> but the document destruction profession has determined that this is a best
> practice.  It also puts responsibility, perhaps even liability, on that
> company to actually ensure the secure destruction of the materials.  An
> invoice demonstrates a business relationship.  The certificate demonstrates
> compliance with a written policy.  You have an additional document to
> demonstrate your compliance.
>
> As to how long you keep these, in lieu of mandated legal or regulatory
> direction, I would go with the relevance value.  How long could they be
> relevant to any demand for documentation of compliance?  This may include
> legal statutes of limitation on material connected with that destruction.
> I am not a lawyer so my advice is not legal advice.  But keep these as long
> as someone can reasonably come back and challenge your processes.
>
> Regards,
>
> David B. Steward
> Director of Records
>
> HUSCH BLACKWELL LLP
> 4801 Main Street, Suite 1000
> Kansas City, MO 64112-2551
> Direct:  816.983.8860
> Fax:  816.983.8080
> [log in to unmask]
> huschblackwell.com
> View Bio | View VCard
>
>
>
>
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