The new year is finally here! And with that in mind it’s time to tackle a big goal that most homeowners neglect to fulfill- creating a home inventory list.
What is a home inventory list?
A home inventory list is a document that contains a record of everything you own that is currently in your home. A typical homeowners insurance policy will cover you in the event of theft, fire, or damage. Of course, you should always check with your agent to make sure you understand your policy’s limitations and what assets would be covered under it.
Moreover, if you have no physical record or proof of owning certain assets and they get damaged or stolen, it may be difficult to move forward with a claim.
In fact, one of our clients recently ran into a bit of a problem when trying to file a claim after a fire. Unfortunately, the fire was so bad, many of the items were damaged to a point where they were indistinguishable. Their claim became difficult to prove simply because they had no physical record of the items. Of course, this process would have been much easier for all parties involved had the client taken the time to create a home inventory list. So, don’t ignore taking inventory of the items in your home, anything can happen to them.
So, what should be in a home inventory list?
Assets with high value such as jewelry, collectibles, furniture, appliances, and electronics should be included. Additionally, you should also include any receipts, date of purchase, make or model number (if available), and location the item is stored in your home. Additionally, you’ve probably received a few new items for Christmas this past year, so don’t forget to include these as well!
Ditch the pen and paper to keep track.
Look, keeping track of your valuables can be time consuming- between organizing folders and making sure you have correct information, it can be overwhelming to get everything done. That’s why our agency offers a simpler solution- the Insurance Agent App.
Our mobile app offers a multitude of services, but in particular helps homeowners store and manage their home inventory list. Moreover, you can do this all through your smartphone. There’s no need to sort files or scan documents when our app does all of that for you.
So, how can you use our app?
First, you’ll need to grab your smartphone and download the Insurance Agent app from either the Apple or Google Play store. Once the app has installed, you’ll need to register as a new user. Simply input your email and a password you’ll remember, and then select “Paradiso Insurance” under the list of insurance agencies. Next, select the agent you work with, and then you’ll be brought to the home screen.
To start a home inventory list, simply tap the property tab at the bottom. Then to upload assets to the app, you’ll need to take a photo of the item. Once you take a picture of the item and tap “use photo”, you’ll be brought to an item detail screen.
The detail screen allows you to upload more pictures, which can be helpful for documenting different angles and sides of your item. Most importantly though, this section allows you to add information about the item, such as the name, model, manufacturer, original cost, year it was bought, etc. This is extremely helpful in claim based situations where the model number or price of an item is needed.
Additionally, the Insurance App property tool allows you to assign items to different rooms and categories. This makes organization easy, and is a great reminder to record every room in your home, not just one.
Once you’re done creating your home inventory, you can email yourself a copy of the PDF to print or keep digitally. You can also share the inventory list with us, too. Simply tap “email me report PDF” or “share report with agent” in the property screen. Moreover, if you ever need to edit this list or add new items the Insurance Agent app allows you to do so.
Smartphones, like anything else, can become broken, lost, or damaged. However, if this happens, your home inventory will still be available. This is because our app is connected to a cloud based server that backs up information every time data is changed or added to it. Therefore, if the unfortunate happens, your home inventory will still be available.
Make 2018 your most productive year yet, don’t wait until it’s too late, get started on your home inventory list, today!
