How To Create an Up to Date Home Inventory For Faster Claims

Annually, about 358,000 homes experience structural home fires. Regardless of how many safety practices you adopt, there’s a likelihood of fire emanating from your kitchen, heater, or an electrical malfunction. 

In the event of a fire outbreak, can you remember all of your valuables and possession? Maybe you have a photographic memory and can recall where every item you have in your room. With the shock, fear, and stress that the fire would have caused, you will likely not remember it all. That’s where a home inventory can come in handy. 

What is a Home Inventory? 

A home inventory is a breakdown of all your personal properties with their corresponding financial value. 

Creating a home inventory can take from few hours to a day, depending on how long you’ve lived in a place and how thorough you want to be. A home inventory may take time, but it will be a time-saver when a catastrophe occurs.  

For the sake of your Homeowner’s insurance claim, let’s help you get started on creating an updated home inventory; 

Tips To Create an Up-To-Date Home Inventory

Even if you know what to do and the right tools to get it done, carrying out a home inventory can be a daunting task. This can even be more difficult if you’ve lived in your home for a year without an existing home inventory to work with.

Here are a few tips to help you get started; 

1. The Big Stuff First

With the bigger items in your home, you can keep it going even when you are tired. As you go from room to room, let your focus be on the big-ticket items. 

You can then move to the closet and drawers to take an inventory of the small items. 

2. Start From a Contained Space

Starting from a contained area will help you get a lot done in less time. 

An example will be your vanity shelf, gym gear closet, or kitchen appliance cabinet; this will be an easy spot to start. 

3. Go From Newer To Older Items

It would be best if you had a lot of motivation to get your inventory done in real-time. 

This motivation can come from focusing on the new items you just bought. The adrenaline of being a new item will keep you going till you’ve covered all items. 

4. Include The Description

The basic information of the items is one of the essential aspects of a home inventory. 

Please write a short item description, the store where it was purchased, the name and model, the serial number, and other valuable references for every item. 

5. Employ Technology 

Our favorite advice is to shoot video on your phone and upload to cloud. While a pen and paper will do the job, technology will make your job easier. You can use an excel it, take pictures, do a video of your home, or use an inventory app. 

Don’t forget to upload this to the cloud. Hard copies can get burnt, remember. 

6. Update and Review Regularly

This is the most critical part of the inventory process. When new items come into your home, or you dispose of old ones, update them on your inventory. 

Keep the receipts and invoice in a retrievable location also. 

Final Thoughts

There are many benefits to having an updated inventory;

1. You buy the appropriate coverage
2. Make claims more effortless and faster
3. Be able to substantiate financial losses for tax purposes. 

We can help you make the most of your Homeowner’s insurance, but it all starts with knowing what you’ve lost. Feel free to reach out to our expert insurance advisors today.