Official guidance, here and abroad
The UK's advice is Be Ready: be able to manage for 3 days if the power, water or phones go off. Here's what it asks, and what other countries say.
Updated
What Be Ready asks
Be Ready is a UK government campaign from the Cabinet Office, launched in October 2026. It covers storms, floods, power cuts and cyber attacks. In short, it asks you to have:
- 3 litres of drinking water per person per day
- Food that doesn't need cooking or a fridge
- A torch, and a battery or wind-up FM radio
- A power bank, a first aid kit and everyone's regular medicines
- Cash, warm clothes, blankets and copies of key documents
- Important numbers and everyone's medicines written down on paper
Read it in full on the Be Ready site, or get the checklist and the household plan as PDFs. Our checklist has the same list on one page, plus a few things we'd add.
What other countries say
Most ask for about the same: 3 days, give or take. Sweden asks for a week, and Germany for longer. If you'd like to plan for a week, the calculator does 7 days too.
The table scrolls sideways.
| Country | Campaign | Plan for | Drinking water | What stands out |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | Be Ready (Cabinet Office, Oct 2026) | 3 days | 3 litres per person per day, for drinking | Puts a number on water for the first time, and adds cash, warm clothes, copies of documents and a written list of numbers and medicines. |
| Ireland | Be Emergency Ready (Oct 2026) | 3 days | Not listed here | A booklet posted to every home. |
| France | National guidance, cited by the UK government | 3 days | Not listed here | One of the countries the UK government points to. |
| Netherlands | National guidance, cited by the UK government | 72 hours | Not listed here | One of the countries the UK government points to. |
| European Union | Preparedness Union Strategy (Mar 2025) | 72 hours | Not listed here | An EU-wide strategy rather than a household campaign. |
| Sweden | If Crisis or War Comes (MSB, 2024) | 1 week | 3 litres per person per day | Posted to 5.2 million homes. A "crisis box", keep one room warm, bags for a toilet that won't flush, and a month of medication. |
| Finland | 72tuntia.fi | 72 hours | Not listed here | The campaign is named after the target: 72 tuntia means 72 hours. |
| Germany | BBK guide | 10 days | Not listed here | The longest target here. |
Sweden's checklist, in English
Sweden's civil contingencies agency, MSB, posted its booklet to homes across Sweden in 2024. It asks for a week rather than 3 days. A few of its ideas are worth borrowing even for 3 days:
- Keep it all in one "crisis box".
- Pick one room and keep it warm.
- Have bags ready in case the toilet won't flush.
The water figure is the same as ours: 3 litres per person per day. MSB publishes the booklet in English as well as Swedish.
Our take
We stick to Be Ready. It's the UK's advice, written for the storms and power cuts the UK actually gets. The rest is useful for ideas, not for buying more.