Investment protection

[rickcr42]

I know most here have put a lot of loot into their AV systems and if something bad were to happen most likely you have insurance to cover the losses .If not you should !

But proving value and cataloging what you have can be a pain so here is a simple little free program that allows you to enter all the information including serial numbers and actual pictures of your gear along with dates ,comments etc.
I have been using one or another version of this software for years and periodically post the link

I was due so here it is :

http://www.moonaudio.com/softwar1.htm

What you do is make a copy to disc and a copy of the data file and store it with a relative a freind or in a safety deposit box just in case

It makes no sense to have the info be destroyed along with the gear in case of fire/flood/earthqwuake/angry ex wives

 

[eric343]

Boy do I need this!

Thanks, Rick!

 

[cmascatello]

Awesome tool. Thanks. I am about to switch insurance policies when I move and this will come in handy.

 

[Edwood]

Wow, that is sweet! I've been looking for something like that!

Thanks Rick.

This needs to be a sticky.

-Ed

 

[GWN]

Thanks Rick. Nice piece of software.

 

[rickcr42]

Quote:

This needs to be a sticky.

probably a good idea but only temporarily .you know how fast these things load up the top of a forum

 

[Mr.PD]

I had a house fire back in 1998. I can tell you it is a major task inventorying what you had. Especially sense you can no longer even see some of the stuff. I took me a couple days to figure out that one pile of melted plastic was a vacuum cleaner.

The insurance company likes receipts or some other form of proof that you owned something, but they realize that a person doesn't always have those receipts. They also need to know what you paid for an item, when you purchased it, and what you think it was worth when it got destroyed. Although, my company didn't take my word as to what an object was worth in most cases.
It took me a month to list everything I had lost. This program sounds like a good thing to me.

 

[john_jcb]

I talked to my insurance agent about my audio gear and what would happen in case of theft or fire. She said it would be covered under my homeowners policy and suggested I do the following to make it easier to collect if ever necessary:

1. Take pictures of each item
2. Make a list of each item with cost
3. Have it appraised and signed by appraiser.
4. Put this documentation someplace safe.

 

[rickcr42]

pretty much my recommendation what the above software allows you to do short of the appraisal !

How do you appraise audio gear and who would do it ?

Audio Blue book plus maybe some E-Bay auction results as comparison I would think .

 

[john_jcb]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rickcr42 pretty much my recommendation what the above software allows you to do short of the appraisal ! How do you appraise audio gear and who would do it ? Audio Blue book plus maybe some E-Bay auction results as comparison I would think .

Well my plan is to ask a person that I know that owns an audio business nearby to do it for me. Rick, I think your suggestion would work equally as well. What you don't want them to do is a straight line depreciation as new equipment drops in value than retains its value for some time.

I plan on getting this all together then storing it in one of our safe deposit boxes.

Thanks for the software link.

 

[aos]

I don't see why you should appraise if it's an item that is being currently sold or there's comparable next model out. If you have vintage gear or one-off manufacture of high value then it is probably worth it, just like with antiques, collectibles and art. Otherwise the cost of appraisal, insurance, safe desposit box etc. might end up not being worth it.

Personally, I have a lot of pictures - of my apartment, with items on shelves, drawers etc. - and plus short movies as well, just in case. Those are burned on a CD and placed in a safe deposit box in a bank. I have some of the bigger receipts there as well but that's not up to date. In case of theft it'd be ok since thiefs are not going to bother findind receipts, but in case of fire I'd have to rely on my Quicken data, which is probably ok. My personal backup (i.e. Quicken financial data, my designs, company database etc.) are on multiple CD/DVD backups, multiple machines, a copy in safe deposit box AND a copy in an online storage.

 

[john_jcb]

Quote:

Originally Posted by aos I don't see why you should appraise if it's an item that is being currently sold or there's comparable next model out. If you have vintage gear or one-off manufacture of high value then it is probably worth it, just like with antiques, collectibles and art. Otherwise the cost of appraisal, insurance, safe desposit box etc. might end up not being worth it.

Where an appraisal helps is if you have an item that costs $12,000 new and you have had it for 7 years. The insurance company will not give you 12,000 but rather what they judge as replacement value. If the item is worth say $10,000 in todays market it gives you a stronger negotiating point. If you are talking stuff that is not really significant I would say the appraisal is a bit much. I have invested quite a bit in my gear and if anything were to happen I would like to be able to replace it.

 

[nanahachi]

Thanks so much Rick!
I've been wondering for a while now how to document some of my gear that I've purchased 2nd-hand, and this program, with serial numbers and photos, is perfect.

I do hope this will remain a sticky so that others will find it as useful as I have. Thanks again for the headsup.