Home Inventory for Insurance: What Your Insurer Actually Needs
Your policy pays for your belongings — but only what you can prove you owned. A home inventory for insurance is that proof, made before you need it. Here's exactly what it has to contain to survive a claim.
When you file a contents claim, the burden of proof is on you, not the insurer. The adjuster assesses the building; your belongings are yours to document. Most people find this out the hard way — trying to reconstruct a lifetime of purchases from memory a week after a fire or burglary — and end up settling for far less than they were owed.
What an insurer looks for in each item
The fields a contents adjuster actually uses
| Field | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Photo of the item | The strongest proof of ownership and condition — hard to dispute. |
| Room / location | Groups the claim and shows where the loss occurred. |
| Estimated value | The per-item number your settlement is built on. |
| Purchase date | Lets the adjuster apply depreciation fairly instead of guessing. |
| Serial / model number | Verifies high-value electronics and appliances. |
ACV vs RCV. Many policies pay *actual cash value* (replacement cost minus depreciation) up front, then release the rest once you replace the item and show proof. A per-item record with a value and date is what lets you claim the full *replacement cost value* you're entitled to — without it, you often can't.
The practical problem isn't building the record once — it's having it available and complete the day you need it. A spreadsheet in cloud storage you can't reach, or a note you forgot to update, is a record that doesn't help.
Homivo is built for exactly this: a photo, room, value and date for each item, a notes field for serial numbers, automatic room subtotals and a live whole-home total. When you file, it exports a claim-ready PDF that matches your catalog item-for-item — every photo, value and total in one document an adjuster can read. All offline on your iPhone, no account, one-time purchase.
Frequently asked questions
Does my insurance require a home inventory?
Most policies don't require you to file one in advance, but after a loss the burden of proving what you owned falls on you. Without an inventory, most people underclaim because they can't remember everything. Preparing one is how you get paid what you're actually owed.
What should a home inventory for insurance include?
For each item: a photo, the room, an estimated replacement value, the purchase date, and any serial or model number. A running whole-home total helps you check your coverage limit is enough.
Does Homivo export something I can send to my insurer?
Yes. Homivo generates a claim-ready PDF with every item's photo, room, value and date, plus your grand total — created offline on your device, ready to hand to an adjuster.