How to Do a Home Insurance Audit

Most people find out their coverage doesn't match their home at the worst possible time, after a fire, a storm, or a break-in, while they're standing in a parking lot trying to remember what was in the closet. A home insurance audit is just a once-a-year habit that keeps that from happening. It takes an afternoon and it makes any future claim faster and less stressful.

Start with a room-by-room inventory

Walk through your home with your phone and film or photograph everything, open the closets and drawers too. Narrate what you're looking at as you go. This is boring for about ten minutes and then it's done, and you'll be glad you have it.

Pay extra attention to:

• Electronics: TVs, computers, game systems
• Appliances, especially anything recently replaced
• Tools and equipment, including anything kept in a shop or shed
• Jewelry, guns, and collectibles
• Furniture and anything custom-built or higher-end

Keep receipts, and store the list off-site

Hang on to receipts for major purchases, they make settling a claim faster and more accurate. Then store the whole inventory, video and receipts included, somewhere other than your house. A cloud drive, an email you send to yourself, or a folder shared with a family member all work fine. The point is that it survives whatever your house doesn't.

Check that your dwelling coverage matches rebuild cost

Your dwelling coverage should reflect what it would cost to rebuild your home today, not what you paid for it or what it would sell for. Those three numbers can drift apart over time, especially after a few years of rising material and labor costs. If you've done a renovation, finished a basement, or added a garage, that's a good moment to double check this number with us.

Ask about high-value items and separate coverage

Standard homeowners policies usually cap coverage on certain categories, like jewelry, firearms, or collectibles, no matter what your total policy limit is. If you own something that would clear that cap on its own, it may be worth scheduling separately. Same goes for farm equipment or a home business, which often need coverage a standard homeowners policy was never built to provide.

Redo it when things change

An inventory from five years ago is better than nothing, but it's not current. Update it after a major purchase, a renovation, or at least once a year. A lot of people do it around the same time every year, tax season or spring cleaning, just so it's a habit rather than a task they have to remember.

Not sure where your coverage stands?

Bring your inventory and your current policy by either office, or give us a call. We'll go through it with you and point out any gaps before they become a problem.