Why score documentation instead of value?

Because the value is not in dispute in the way people expect — the evidence is. A contents settlement is assembled from a schedule of items with descriptions, ages and values, and where that schedule is thin the settlement is thin. Not from bad faith, but because there is nothing to price. Your total tells you what you own; the coverage figure tells you what you could show.

Do you store or see my inventory?

No. The calculator runs entirely in your browser, nothing is uploaded, nothing is emailed and we hold no record of anything you type. The tool deliberately asks for counts and totals rather than item details, so there is nothing sensitive to leak even in principle.

What is the fastest way to build an inventory?

Walk each room slowly with a phone camera, narrating what things are and roughly when you bought them, opening cupboards and drawers as you go. Ten minutes of video captures more than an afternoon of typing. Then get the file off the property before you do anything else with it.

Why does the off-site copy matter so much?

Because the events that destroy your possessions also destroy records kept alongside them. An inventory on a laptop in the house, or on a drive in the same cupboard, is gone in the same fire. Cloud storage, an email to yourself, or a copy with a relative all solve it, and all take about a minute — but only if done before.

Do I need receipts for everything?

No, and trying to is how inventories get abandoned half-finished. For most household goods a photograph showing the item exists and is yours is sufficient. Receipts earn their keep on high-value, recently purchased or unusual items, where age and specification actually drive the valuation.

Are all my belongings covered up to my contents limit?

Frequently not. Policies commonly cap specific categories — jewellery, cash, art and collections, firearms, business property kept at home — regardless of your overall contents limit, and some need to be scheduled individually to be covered at full value. The table above lists the usual categories; the limits are in your own policy and worth reading before a loss.

How often should I update it?

After a significant purchase, after a move, or once a year — not continuously, which is the pattern that leads to abandonment. An eighteen-month-old inventory is vastly better than no inventory, so do not let staleness become a reason to stop.

Water is already in the house. Is it too late?

For prevention, yes; for evidence, no. Photograph everything before anything is removed or thrown away, including the damaged items themselves and the room as a whole. That is the highest-value hour available to you right now, and once mitigation begins the opportunity is gone.

Does HyreRestore value contents or handle claims?

No. We hold no pricing data, do not appraise, do not adjust claims and do not perform restoration work. This scores a document you keep yourself; the valuation and the settlement are between you and your carrier.

HyreRestore tools

Home inventory, scored on evidence rather than value

The total does not decide your settlement. What you can show does. This scores documentation coverage, names the gap in dollars, and asks the one question that matters most — whether a copy exists outside the building.

Off-site or nothing the field that changes the advice An inventory stored only inside the house evidences nothing after a fire or a flood, and an external drive in the same cupboard is no better. Everything else on this page is optimisation; getting a copy off the property is the step that makes the inventory exist at all.

Enter how many items you have listed, their estimated replacement value, and how many are photographed. The tool returns your documentation coverage and the dollar value listed but not evidenced — the portion of your own inventory that would be hard to substantiate.

Nothing is uploaded and nothing is stored. This runs in your browser and we never see your figures. It is a self-audit of a document you keep yourself, not a claim submission and not a valuation.

Documentation self-audit

Counts and totals only. Nothing is uploaded, stored or emailed.

— Do this next

— Documentation coverage

— Listed but not evidenced

— Photographed value

— Listed replacement value

— Depth per room

What this assumed —

Scores documentation, not value. Not a valuation, an appraisal or a claim submission.

A contents claim is settled on evidence, not on memory

The building is visible and measurable. Contents are neither, which is why they are the part of a claim that goes wrong.

Nobody can reconstruct a household from memory under pressure. People routinely under-list by a wide margin after a loss — not because they are careless but because a house contains thousands of items and grief, displacement and deadlines are poor conditions for recall. The list you make calmly beforehand is worth more than the one you make afterwards.

The adjuster is not the obstacle here. A contents settlement is built from a schedule of items with descriptions, ages and values. Where that schedule is thin, the settlement is thin — not out of bad faith but because there is nothing to price. Documentation is the whole lever.

Photographs beat lists, and video beats both for speed. A slow walk through each room with a phone, opening cupboards and drawers and narrating what things are, captures more in ten minutes than an afternoon of typing. Receipts matter most for the small number of high-value items where age and specification drive the figure.

The copy has to leave the building. This is the field on the tool that changes the advice completely. An inventory stored only on a laptop in the house evidences nothing after a fire, and an external drive in the same cupboard is no better. Cloud storage, an email to yourself, or a copy with a relative all work; none of them works if it is done later.

Note what your insurer can already see. undefined Your own history is on file whether or not you keep records. Your possessions are not.

How to build one in an afternoon

In order of value per minute spent. Most households get eighty per cent of the benefit from the first three.

Video every room, narrating as you go
Slowly, with the lights on. Open wardrobes, cupboards, drawers and the garage. Say what things are and roughly when you bought them. Ten minutes of video is worth more than an hour of typing and can be done today.
Get the copy off the property immediately
Before you do anything else with it. Cloud storage, an email to yourself, a copy with a relative. An inventory that burns with the house is not an inventory. This step is free and takes a minute.
Photograph serial numbers and model plates
Appliances, electronics, tools, anything with a plate. These turn "a television" into a specific model with a specific replacement cost, which is the difference between an estimate and a settlement.
List the high-value items properly
Jewellery, art, collections, musical instruments, tools, cameras. These are also the categories most likely to carry a sub-limit in your policy — a schedule may be needed for them to be covered at full value at all.
Keep receipts only where they change the number
For most household goods a photograph is enough. Receipts earn their keep on high-value, recently purchased or unusual items where age and specification drive the valuation.
Update it when something significant changes
Not continuously — that is how inventories get abandoned. After a large purchase, a move, or once a year. An eighteen-month-old inventory is enormously better than none.

Where contents cover is usually narrower than people expect

Policies commonly cap certain categories regardless of your overall contents limit. These are the categories where an inventory changes the outcome most, because they may need scheduling rather than simply listing. Check your own policy — the categories are typical, the limits are yours.

Category	Why it is capped	What to do
Jewellery, watches, furs	High value in small, easily lost items. Commonly subject to a low per-item and aggregate cap for theft.	Photograph, appraise the significant pieces, and ask about scheduling them individually.
Cash and precious metals	Unverifiable after a loss, so limits are typically very low.	Do not rely on contents cover for these. Note the limit and plan around it.
Art, antiques, collections	Value depends on provenance and condition rather than replacement cost.	Appraisals and provenance documents, held off-site with the inventory.
Business property at home	Often capped severely or excluded, and increasingly common as a gap.	If you work from home, establish what is covered before a loss rather than after.
Firearms, musical instruments, tools	Frequently carry their own sub-limits.	Serial numbers and photographs; ask whether a schedule is needed.

Questions this calculator answers

Why score documentation instead of value?: Because the value is not in dispute in the way people expect — the evidence is. A contents settlement is assembled from a schedule of items with descriptions, ages and values, and where that schedule is thin the settlement is thin. Not from bad faith, but because there is nothing to price. Your total tells you what you own; the coverage figure tells you what you could show.
Do you store or see my inventory?: No. The calculator runs entirely in your browser, nothing is uploaded, nothing is emailed and we hold no record of anything you type. The tool deliberately asks for counts and totals rather than item details, so there is nothing sensitive to leak even in principle.
What is the fastest way to build an inventory?: Walk each room slowly with a phone camera, narrating what things are and roughly when you bought them, opening cupboards and drawers as you go. Ten minutes of video captures more than an afternoon of typing. Then get the file off the property before you do anything else with it.
Why does the off-site copy matter so much?: Because the events that destroy your possessions also destroy records kept alongside them. An inventory on a laptop in the house, or on a drive in the same cupboard, is gone in the same fire. Cloud storage, an email to yourself, or a copy with a relative all solve it, and all take about a minute — but only if done before.
Do I need receipts for everything?: No, and trying to is how inventories get abandoned half-finished. For most household goods a photograph showing the item exists and is yours is sufficient. Receipts earn their keep on high-value, recently purchased or unusual items, where age and specification actually drive the valuation.
Are all my belongings covered up to my contents limit?: Frequently not. Policies commonly cap specific categories — jewellery, cash, art and collections, firearms, business property kept at home — regardless of your overall contents limit, and some need to be scheduled individually to be covered at full value. The table above lists the usual categories; the limits are in your own policy and worth reading before a loss.
How often should I update it?: After a significant purchase, after a move, or once a year — not continuously, which is the pattern that leads to abandonment. An eighteen-month-old inventory is vastly better than no inventory, so do not let staleness become a reason to stop.
Water is already in the house. Is it too late?: For prevention, yes; for evidence, no. Photograph everything before anything is removed or thrown away, including the damaged items themselves and the room as a whole. That is the highest-value hour available to you right now, and once mitigation begins the opportunity is gone.
Does HyreRestore value contents or handle claims?: No. We hold no pricing data, do not appraise, do not adjust claims and do not perform restoration work. This scores a document you keep yourself; the valuation and the settlement are between you and your carrier.

Sources and methodology

Figures dated 5 September 2026. Last reviewed September 18, 2026.

ACV vs RCV on a restoration loss (HyreRestore Research Desk, retrieved 2026-09-05. Which settlement basis applies to your contents, which decides whether age reduces what you receive — and therefore how much the documented age of an item matters.)
Claim timeline (HyreRestore Research Desk, retrieved 2026-09-05. When a contents schedule is normally required, and how little time there is to assemble one after a loss.)

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