Disclaimer. Collectalia is not a legal, tax or insurance advice site. The information on this page is general and based on French legislation in force as of 09/11/2026: it may change, does not necessarily apply outside France and does not take your situation into account. Always have it checked by a notary, a lawyer, an accountant or your insurer before acting on it.
The essentials
- A home inventory with photos, invoices and serial numbers serves you on the day of a claim.
- Warranty tracking avoids paying for a repair that would have been covered.
- Keeping invoices and manuals with each item means finding them in a second, including when you move house.
Home inventory and warranty tracking: what to keep track of
A home contains dozens of items: furniture, appliances, television, computers, phones, bicycles, car. Each has its invoice, its warranty, its manual, sometimes an extended warranty. The day the washing machine breaks down, you search for all this in a drawer, and often discover the end of the warranty too late.
Keeping an inventory of your home means noting once and for all what identifies each item (make, exact model, serial number) and storing with it the invoice, warranty, manual and after-sales contact. It also means tracking the maintenance of equipment and everyday vehicles.
What a household item entry contains
| Field | What it is for |
|---|---|
| Exact reference or model, serial no. or IMEI | Identify the item; essential for the insurer, after-sales service and the police report in the event of theft. |
| Shop or seller | Know whom to contact for a complaint. |
| Warranty until, extended warranty until | Receive a reminder before the warranty ends. |
| Warranty contract no., after-sales service contact | Claim under the warranty without searching. |
| Manual or instructions (link) | Find the manual in one click. |
| Consumables (filters, bulbs, batteries…) | Reorder the right reference. |
| Energy, energy class | Complete the description of appliances. |
| Photos and documents | Invoice, warranty certificate, photo of the item and of its rating plate. |
For everyday vehicles (car, motorbike, bicycle, scooter), the entry adds the registration number, the chassis or frame number, the date of first registration, the mileage, the roadworthiness test (contrôle technique) and the next oil change or service with a reminder, the Crit’Air sticker, the anti-theft marking and the location of the keys.
End-of-warranty and maintenance reminders
A warranty is only useful if you remember it in time. Note its end date as soon as you buy: a reminder before the expiry date gives you time to report a fault. The same goes for the roadworthiness test or the oil change.
Value and insurance
After a burglary, a fire or water damage, the insurer asks you to prove what you owned and what it was worth. Invoices, photos and serial numbers are your best evidence; without them, compensation is open to dispute. Our guide to making a home inventory for insurance details the room-by-room method, and the one on theft without an invoice explains how to prove what no longer has a supporting document. Works of art have their own page: works of art.
Moving house and succession
When you move house, an inventory shows what is leaving, what goes into storage, and helps check that nothing is missing on arrival. For your family, an up-to-date inventory with the invoices and contracts saves them from searching through papers. For how it is treated in an estate, consult your notary (notaire).
Photos from your phone and sharing
Photograph each item, its rating plate with the serial number and its invoice, at the time of purchase. To send a file to the insurer, share a selection through a password-protected, time-limited link. If you already keep a list in a spreadsheet, our comparison Excel spreadsheet or software will help you choose.
With Collectalia
Collectalia keeps one entry per item: exact model, serial number, shop, warranty and extension, contract, manual, after-sales contact, consumables, photos taken from your phone by scanning a QR code, attached invoices and location (main home, second home, storage unit). An automatic reminder arrives one month and one week before each warranty end or maintenance due date, then on the day itself. PDF reports and Excel exports for the insurer. Free trial.
Disclaimer. Collectalia is not a legal, tax or insurance advice site. The information on this page is general and based on French legislation in force as of 09/11/2026: it may change, does not necessarily apply outside France and does not take your situation into account. Always have it checked by a notary, a lawyer, an accountant or your insurer before acting on it.