Home Inventory Checklist
Do you know not only WHAT is in your home, but the VALUE associated with those items? Why is this question important?
If there is damage to your home, caused by a covered loss on a homeowner policy, your insurance carrier may want some kind of inventory list from you. The detail needed will depend on your policy's language. Are your contents covered on a replacement cost or actual cash value?
Henriott Group is in the protection business. Therefore, 100% of the homeowner policies we write are written with replacement cost value. For example, in the case of a house fire, the couch you purchased 10 years ago will be replaced at a value of a couch at the time of the loss (today's value) versus the purchase value 10 years ago. Nice, right?
So how does actual cash value work? To use the example above, the destroyed couch you purchased 10 years ago will be replaced at the same value couches could be purchased at 10 years ago. In addition to that bad news, if the couch you purchase was of exceptional quality, but don't have a copy of your purchase receipt, they will only be required to reimburse you for the price of a "normal" couch 10 years ago even though it's less than its original value. Not so nice.
The bigger issue with a loss like this is that it's personal, very personal. At the time of loss there is so much chaos. It's overwhelming and emotional. So much so that it's nearly impossible, for you and your family to recall everything that was inside of your home. Memorabilia, antiques, silver - all but forgotten until that time you have a reason to remember... only to find that it's not there, it's gone.
To provide some piece of mind and clarity, at a time when it's needed most, complete a home inventory checklist and store it outside of your home or in a fireproof safe. We're not here to tell you it's a simple process, because it's not. We are here to tell you how valuable it is when you need it the most. It takes time and you'll be surprised at the total value you have inside of your home. In the end it's not really for your insurance carrier, it's for your own piece of mind.