Hi Thomas, we are so sorry to hear of the magnitude of loss you’re dealing with after the Eaton Fire. When a claim involves one-of-a-kind items, heirlooms, artwork, rare books, antiques, or handcrafted pieces, pricing and valuation become much more specialized and cannot be accurately captured through simple retail searches.
In situations like this, United Policyholders recommends considering professional assistance in order to support documentation, valuation, and communication with the insurer. Two types of professionals may be particularly helpful:
Licensed Public Adjuster (PA)
A Public Adjuster represents you (not the insurance company) and can assist with establishing accurate replacement cost and actual cash value, researching specialty, antique, and unique-item market values, repairing and organizing your contents inventory and proof-of-loss, and handling insurer communications to help ensure a fair settlement.
Contents / Inventory Specialist
In claims involving extensive loss of personal property, especially unique or historically valuable items, a contents specialist can create detailed inventories if you are unable to complete them yourself, research verified, defensible valuations for rare or specialized objects, organize photographic proof, appraisals, receipts, and provenance, and help build a professional contents submission package.
Both options can significantly reduce the emotional and administrative burden you’re carrying, and investing in expert support often results in a more accurate and complete recovery.
You can review guidance on hiring and vetting a Public Adjuster or other professionals here:
https://uphelp.org/claim-guidance-and-resources/speak-with-an-expert/
You can also review several potential professionals that could provide the services you are requesting here:
https://uphelp.org/sponsors/
Alternatively, an online personal property platform that you may find beneficial is called Bevelmade, which several fire survivors have recommended:
https://inventory.bevelmade.com/
This is a heavy lift for you and your family and we hope that you find the resources to lessen the burden and ease your recovery.
