I tried it on a smaller scale, recalling everything in my home office from memory. I came up with 51 different ideas. Not bad, I thought, but when I returned to my room, I discovered another 25 things I'd overlooked.

"All of the stuff that we accumulate as individuals over the years... often amounts to hundreds of thousands of dollars." "It's nearly impossible to remember all of those minor details," says Steve Severaid, president of The Greenspan Co./Adjusters International, a public adjusting firm serving California, Nevada, and Arizona. Public insurance adjusters assist policyholders in negotiating reasonable insurance claims.

Consider conducting a survey of your belongings, also known as a home inventory, to ensure that your claim payout is adequate.

The benefits of a home inventory

After a disaster, you'll most likely be mourning the loss of your home, looking for a temporary place to live, and trying to figure out what to do next. Aside from assisting you in receiving full reimbursement for your belongings, having a home inventory can alleviate your burden during a stressful time.

"Is it difficult to [make an inventory] now?" "Certainly," says Katherine Navarro Wong, owner of a State Farm agency in Santa Rosa, California. "But it's extremely difficult after you've lost everything."

Because you've already done the majority of the work, having a home inventory in place makes filing your claim easier and faster, according to Wong. "You'll have your money sooner."

Creating an inventory can also assist you in ensuring that you have adequate insurance coverage. Wong believes that until you start documenting everything, you may not realize how much your possessions are worth. If you discover that your personal property coverage is insufficient, you'll have time to raise your limit before disaster strikes.

How to create a home inventory

Although listing all of your possessions may appear to be a daunting task, there are ways to make it more manageable.

"One of the... quickest, simplest ways is to take 15 or 20 minutes with a video camera or your iPhone," Severaid says. He suggests walking through each room and narrating as you go, zooming in on high-value item labels. Remember to open dresser drawers and cabinet doors to show what's inside.

Aside from being faster to create than a written record, a video allows your insurance company to see the quality of your items, according to Severaid.

Another option is to take photos instead of videos. Many home inventory apps, for example, let you upload images and information about each item, such as the serial number or date of purchase.

My personal favorite is the Encircle app, which allows you to quickly canvass each room with a series of photos and then add specific item details. It is available for both iOS and Android devices.

You can also make a spreadsheet from scratch or by downloading a template from the internet. United Policyholders, a consumer advocacy group, for example, provides a comprehensive inventory spreadsheet with hundreds of suggested items organized by room.

If counting every kitchen towel makes you want to give up, Wong recommends "focusing on the more valuable items." Jewelry, artwork, musical instruments and collections, as well as furniture and electronics, may be included. She also points out that the items in a toolshed can quickly add up.

Whatever method you use, make sure your home inventory is stored somewhere other than your home, such as the cloud or a bank safe deposit box. Having an inventory is useless if the computer it's on burns down in a fire.

Wong suggests that your insurance agent may be willing to keep a copy of your inventory.

According to Severaid, you should update your inventory every year or two, or sooner if you've made major purchases or redecorated your home.

Making a claim without an inventory

If disaster strikes before you've completed an inventory, you can try the following to maximize your home insurance claim:

• Severaid suggests asking friends and family to share photos taken at your home. "The photographs are never meant to document the house," he says, "but it's always in the background." "That's a great way to get information when you're not prepared."
• Look through your phone (if it survived the disaster) and social media accounts for photos of the inside of your house.
• To help you remember, look for a list of common household items, such as the United Policyholders inventory above.
• Examine your order history at the online stores where you shop the most. Receipts for previous purchases may also be in your email account.