Tracking claim expenses and receipts

Living costs while you can’t live at home

Many homeowners and renters policies include additional living expenses (often called ALE or loss of use) for extra costs when your home can’t be lived in. What’s covered, for how long and up to what amount depends on your policy, and your insurer decides.

Many policies look at the extra cost above what you normally spend, so it helps to note your usual costs too, such as your normal grocery bill, rent or mortgage, and commute.

What to keep

• Hotel or rental bills, with the dates of your stay
• Meals and groceries
• Extra mileage, with the date, trip and miles for each drive
• Laundry, storage units, pet boarding and other costs you wouldn’t normally have
• Receipts for emergency repairs such as tarps or water removal, kept separately from living costs

Damaged belongings go on their own list, not this one; the damaged property inventory guide covers what to record for each item.

For each receipt, note

• The date and the store or business
• The amount
• What it was for (hotel, meals, mileage, storage, repair)
• Who paid, if more than one person is paying
• When you sent a copy to your insurer, and when it was paid back

A sample receipt log

A blank cell just means it hasn’t happened yet. The log records what you paid and when; it doesn’t show what your insurer will cover.

Keeping them in order

Photograph each receipt the day you get it; thermal paper fades, and pockets lose things. Keep the paper originals in an envelope or folder for each month.

A simple running list (date, store, amount, what for, sent, paid back) shows the total at a glance and makes it easy to answer when your insurer asks. Send copies and keep the originals. Watch for the same receipt entered twice, such as a hotel bill and the card statement for the same night.

If a storm or flood is what moved you out, the storm damage documentation checklist covers the photos and records to gather before cleanup.

Keeping it all in one place

Paper folders, a notebook and your phone’s camera are enough to follow this guide. If you’d rather keep it together on your phone, Claim Binder (now in beta testing on iPhone and iPad) holds your photos, items, receipts, contacts and deadlines in one place on your iPhone or iPad, even without electricity or cell signal.