Insurance company claims adjusters refer to them as “triggering events”, which might include:
break-ins, tornados, hailstorms, fires or even divorces (disputed items sometimes “disappear” in the process). In any event, it’s up to the insured to prove what items were lost. That means producing available receipts, photographs, and other evidence. “It doesn’t matter where you live…the insurance claim process is the same, United Policyholders points out. “When it comes to collecting on your insurance policy to replace the contents of your home, it’s all about documentation, organization and negotiation.”
Sometimes, when inventory professional Greg Holton gets a call, it isn’t from an insured or an insurance agent. Instead, it’s an executor or trustee calling. One of the executor’s most important – and often most onerous – tasks is listing the estate’s assets for the court and for the heirs. To complete that inventory list, the executor must gather:
- proof of ownership, including vehicle titles, property deeds, and financial statements
- appraisals for heirlooms, jewelry, artwork, antiques, and vehicles
Once the executor has completed the inventory, it is filed with the court and copies are ‘served” to all the heirs at their proper addresses.
At Geyer Law, we counsel and represent executors, personal representatives, trustees and beneficiaries on the proper settlement of estates and administration of trusts to ensure prompt resolution and minimize stress at an already difficult time. Services we regularly provide include:
- commencing probate proceedings
- advising regarding valuation and taxation
- paying of claims
- funding trusts
- preparing tax returns
- closing the proceedings
“People always seem to have their eye on their next purchase,” Holton observed in an interview.
“We’re not about keeping track of those purchases, at least not until a triggering event happens. Then you realize you don’t even know what you own.” T
You need to think of both business and personal assets the same way you think of your money, Holton asserts. We turn to professional advisors such as accountants and financial planners to manage and “inventory” our money; we need to do the same with our physical assets, hiring a professional inventory specialist to create and then, as we add assets, updating our inventory list.
An executor is most often a sibling or an adult child. The duties and responsibilities he or she is required to complete are often overwhelming. While experiencing one of the most difficult times of their lives, executors are burdened with completing the emotional task of creating the estate inventory. Taking inventory of your assets is a must-do, not a mere “should do”. Don’t wait for the triggering event, Holton urges.
