Taking Inventory to Safeguard Your Practice

Most dentists have a general idea what they own and how much it’s worth, but not all have a thorough, detailed inventory of their office contents. Unfortunately, failing to document all items of value can lead to a shortage of insurance coverage should a loss occur. 

The Importance of Inventory 
The Dentists Insurance Company reports many cases in which dentists have failed to conduct accurate inventories of their office contents and subsequently did not purchase enough coverage. In one case, a dentist purchased only $580,000 in coverage for a practice with 12 operatories, which had a value of at least $1.2 million — not including the value of the reception area, break room or sterilization room. In another case, the building in which a dentist housed her practice suffered a fire, and while her property was unaffected, she was forced to relocate. But with four operatories and 1,600 square feet, her $287,000 coverage was hardly enough to rebuild her practice in a new location.  

Waiting until after a loss occurs to conduct an inventory can slow down the claims process and dentists risk inaccurate reimbursements due to unaccounted for and overlooked items. Conducting thorough inventories preemptively avoids additional and unnecessary stress following a loss.  

Options for Documenting InventoryWhile a manual method or spreadsheet can suffice, taking inventory of your property has never been easier with apps and software designed especially for this purpose. Tools marketed for conducting home inventories can also work well for documenting business personal property.  

Here are two popular options for digital property documentation (not endorsed by TDIC):  

• NAIC Home Inventory. Developed by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, one of this apps useful features is the barcode scan, which will automatically fill in an item’s serial number if you hover your phone over the barcode. You can also add multiple videos or images to each entry, which is handy when listing items in bulk. 

• Encircle. An app designed to inventory home belongings, Encircle’s intuitive, photo-based interface can also be used to quickly and accurately take a visual inventory for a small business. Both mobile and desktop accessible, data can be exported to PDF or Excel. The home inventory app is free on the App Store and Google Play. 

Simply taking a walk-through video of your practice can be an efficient way to document its contents. While it may not have the robust detail of other digital documentation options, risk management analysts agree that some documentation is better than none. If all you have time for now is a video of your practice, that will suffice until you have the capacity to do more. 

Finding Resources and Support 
Ensure your practice — and everything in it — is taken into account. Failing to document all contents can lead to stress and frustration should a loss occur. Taking complete and regular inventories of your office contents allows you to purchase the coverage that’s right for you and ease the process of filing a claim. 

 As a TDIC policyholder, you can refer to your declaration insert to determine your individual policy’s coverage limits. To make adjustments, contact a TDIC advisor who can work with you to assess the value of your office’s contents and develop a coverage plan that ensures you are not under- or over-insured. 

TDIC’s Risk Management Advice Line is a benefit to TDIC policyholders. To schedule a consultation with an experienced risk management analyst, visit tdicinsurance.com/RMconsult or call 1.877.269.8844.