Inventory Solutions Resources - Tips - and Articles

Getting started with your inventory: Tips

Select the appropriate work sheet from the following list.

• Home inventory worksheets
• Evacuation worksheets
• Church Worksheets
• With your work sheet in hand, walk through each room and record high-valued items, such as precious metal items, collections, antiques, paintings and art work.
• Then list furniture, carpeting, and electronic items such as TV's, stereo and computer equipment. Remember clothing, draperies, wall hangings, rugs, CDs, tapes, linens, lamps and appliances. Open drawers, cupboards and closets and record what's inside.
• Open toolboxes, cabinets and storage bins and include their contents.
• One way to complete the inventory would be to tackle a different room each week until everything is listed.

Open your inventory program.

• Double click the inventory icon on your desktop.
• Print a copy of the user's manual for your reference. You will need Adobe Acrobat reader to view the user's manual.
• Enter the information on items from your work sheet
• Save a copy of your inventory on disc.

Take Photographs

Supplement your inventory with photos of your property. These will add further proof of ownership and add detail to descriptions. They also help document each item's condition and size.

• Take wide angle photographs of entire rooms
• Take individual, close up shots of expensive items and group shots of lower valued items.
• Zoom in on labels and special features, like signatures on art work or serial numbers on appliances and electronics.
• Date photos using the date imprint function on your camera.
• When you inventory outdoor items, include sporting goods and yard equipment and other articles kept outside.
• Take an exterior photo.
• Include pictures of other structures, rare trees or shrubs and unusual landscaping. These aren't't considered personal property but it could be helpful to have a record of them.
• Develop the photos on disc, download to your inventory folder and attach photos to descriptions of items.

  When taking your photographs it may be helpful to take your work sheets along and follow the same sequence you did while entering item information. When images are placed on a disc they will be numbered, another helpful idea would be to re-name your image files by right clicking on them in your explorer and renaming them with the item description making them easier to locate.

After you have completed your inventory:

• Once you have completed your inventory, print your complete inventory list, including photos.
• Make a backup copy of the inventory on CD-Rom according to the instructions that came with your software
• Store a copy of the printed list and the Inventory CD off premises (a safe deposit box is the most secure location)
• Be sure and update your inventory every four to six months or as needed. In the meantime, save receipts for any new items you will need to add. If you make a major purchase, update your inventory as soon as possible.
• Remember to delete items you no longer have.

Is your insurance what you want?

To many people find out after a loss that they should have increased their coverage amounts or purchased replacement cost coverage. Use your inventory to help you avoid this common mistake.

Use the inventory software to add your estimated values to find out how much it will cost to replace everything, then compare this figure with your insurance policy. This will be a good indicator of whether or not you need to increase coverage.

Remember many insurance policies place special limits on valuable personal property, such as jewelry, silverware, art work, tools, special collections like stamps, coins and firearms. If you own these items check the limits in your insurance policy. If they are not high enough, you may need to purchase separate insurance. Contact your insurance agent for further information.

How an inventory can help you.

If disaster strikes, a property inventory will help you:

• Provide your insurance company with a complete list of property so you can receive compensation for everything your policy covers.
• Promptly file a complete claim that can be settled quickly and accurately.
• Confirm adequate coverage.
• Determine which items were stolen and identify recovered property after a burglary.
• Provide a record of model and serial numbers for easy identification of items.
• Verify parts of a loss that you may be able to write off on your federal income taxes.

A complete inventory contains;

• A listing of all your items with pertinent facts
• Receipts for your most valuable objects
• Photographs of building and personal property.
• Current appraised values.

Why use our software?

• Computerized inventory is easy to update and store.
• The software calculates values for you .
• Keep track of where items are stored
• All information is in one location
• Print summary reports of total values by location or category.
• If someone needs information on property print them a professional report instead of hand written notes.
• If a loss occurs simply tag the items that were lost or damaged, and select "print claim form" The form separates property by location, totals values in each location and includes depreciation if needed.
• Check the values in any category to be sure you have enough insurance coverage.

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