Spring Cleaning Offers An Opportunity To Take Stock Of Your Home

WORCESTER, Mass., May 15, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- This spring, as many homeowners are cleaning, there is no better time to take stock of your belongings. Putting together a home inventory can help individuals and families track important items in the event of a future loss. To help homeowners get started, The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE: THG) is offering its best practices for creating a household inventory.

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"Unfortunately, you never know when a disaster may strike and you might suffer the loss of a home," said Mitchell H. Jawitz, vice president, personal lines marketing at The Hanover. "In that time of need, it's difficult to recall all of the personal items one may have lost. Having a home inventory can help you to replace everything in your home in a fast and efficient way if you have a covered loss."

Tips for creating a home inventory:

• List Everything: First, go through each room, listing major items. Include purchase date and price, if known. Save, store and make copies of receipts –keeping them outside of your home. Include serial numbers for appliances, electronics, and cameras.
• Take Photos or Videos: Open all closet and cabinet doors. Stand in the center of each room and take one picture of each wall or scan the room with a video camera.
• Let Technology Help You: Visit Hanover.com to find a link to the Insurance Information Institute (III)'s program, Know Your Stuff, which allows you to use your computer or smartphone to inventory your possessions and store it in a safe online account. 

Once the home inventory is created, it is best to keep it up to date. List and photograph new purchases and gifts as they arrive in your home. Delete items you no longer own.  Make it a habit in the spring and the fall. And, it is good practice to check in with an insurance agent about whether items on the list are insured. Some homeowners' policies will have limited coverage on jewelry, collectibles, or other expensive valuables. These items need to be insured separately. An independent insurance agent can offer valuable advice and help you distinguish between what is covered and what is not. To find an agent, click here.

In addition, The Hanover's Platinum Experience customers can also keep track of their household items through The Hanover's home inventory website and mobile app available through MyHanoverPolicy, which can be accessed from www.hanover.com.  For more information on how to protect your valuables from loss, you can access our valuables insurance website here.

ABOUT THE HANOVER

Founded in 1852, The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE: THG) is proud to be celebrating 160 years of delivering on its promises to its agent and broker partners, and their customers. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc., based in Worcester, Mass., is the holding company for a group of insurers that includes The Hanover Insurance Company, Worcester, Mass., Citizens Insurance Company of America, Howell, Mich., Chaucer Holdings plc, London, and their affiliates. The Hanover offers a wide range of property and casualty products and services to businesses, individuals, and families through a select group of agents and brokers. The company is ranked among the top 25 property and casualty insurers in the United States. Through Chaucer, the company also underwrites business at Lloyd's of London in several major insurance and reinsurance classes, including property, marine and aviation, energy, U.K. motor and casualty. For more information, please visit www.Hanover.com. 

CONTACT:
Amy Banek
Media Relations 
[email protected] 
(508) 855-4486

The recommendation(s), advice and contents of this material are provided for informational purposes only and do not purport to address every possible legal obligation, hazard, code violation, loss potential or exception to good practice. The Hanover Insurance Company and its affiliates and subsidiaries ("The Hanover") specifically disclaim any warranty or representation that acceptance of  any recommendations or advice  contained herein will make any premises, property or operation safe or in compliance with any law or regulation.   Under no circumstances should this material or your acceptance of any recommendations or advice contained herein be construed as establishing the existence or availability of any insurance coverage with The Hanover.  By providing this information to you, The Hanover does not assume (and specifically disclaims) any duty, undertaking or responsibility to you.  The decision to accept or implement any recommendation(s) or advice contained in this material must be made by you.

SOURCE The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc.