Did Santa come to your house hold this year? He came to many Irish homes and with him came plenty of new toys and presents. Now while this is all well and good, these new items might be valuable or not so valuable depending on how you view them.

However it is nice to know that should anything happen to them, you can be refunded their cost or have them replaced by your insurance company. However this can be quite difficult. Losing items in a fire storm or by a home invader is stressful enough without trying to remember the entire contents of your home and how much they were worth.

The purpose of a household inventory list is to save you this hassle. What you need to do is take an inventory of all your valuables or not so valuables in case something unfortunate should happen and you have to make an insurance claim. The inventory is documentation that you will need to use in negotiating replacement costs with an insurance company.

Creating an inventory can often be time consuming, but it’s well worth the effort. Normally it is best to take pictures or video of your items like those expensive silk curtains you own. Sometimes a insurance company can dispute the cost of a certain item, especially if the item is expensive, by having photographic proof, you can be ensured that you will be given the full replacement cost.

Listing your possessions after a burglary or natural disaster can be an emotional rollercoaster and it can be quite difficult to remember everything you owned, some items might even slip your mind as your try to recall everything. We aren’t computers, we don’t just have that information ready off the top of our heads and having a home inventory list can be extremely useful in relieving you of that added stress.

An inventory is not only a record of your home’s contents and their values, but also a good indicator on whether you are adequately insured. It might be a good idea to add that new engagement ring or apple laptop that you got for Christmas to your policy to ensure adequate cover.

There are many ways to take a home inventory list, some people prioritise their possessions, others go by room to room and others simply start at the front door and continue on. The choices are up to you, but we would advise you to at least do it. It also might be a good idea to store it in a few places, for example a note book or binder, on the internet or even a USB hidden in your sock drawer. That way if you lose one, at least you’ll have a backup.

Many people make one list and forget about it until he comes time to make a claim and they realise that they forgot to add that new vase they got on holiday or couch that was just put in last month to the list. It’s a good tip to update your list at least four times a year to ensure that your items are documented. If you can, keep all your receipts and serial numbers of the big-ticket items. 

If you want to see your question answered here on our blog or if you are interested any kind of insurance, give us a call (1890-746-759). Our website is also here to answer any of your questions and to give you a FREE quotation on your insurance. We also have a twitter and a facebook page that you can use to contact us, should you have any questions.