Organising the paperwork and packaging from your purchases

When we purchase an item, it often comes with paperwork (receipts, warranties, user manuals) and packaging. This excess paperwork and packaging from our purchases can be a challenge. In this post, Jane Rice of Serenity Organising & Decluttering in Dunfermline shares her advice on what to do with it all.

How to declutter, organise and store receipts, warranties, user manuals and cardboard boxes

If you’re reading this post, the chances are that you are thinking about what to do with the empty cardboard boxes gathering dust in your garage, loft or other spaces in your home. Yes, they clutter up your space, but somehow you or your family members believe they might be useful someday. Empty boxes, together with receipts, warranties and the user manuals they came with, make up a major source of paper clutter in many homes. We know this because some of the frequently asked questions from our clients are: "How do I store receipts/warranties/user manuals?"; "Can I, or should I, keep those gadgets boxes?" To answer these questions, we need first to ascertain the purpose of this type of paperwork and the boxes they came in.

Store receipts and warranties together

As you know, receipts are needed should you ever want to exchange or return the product. Warranties serve a similar purpose if the item breaks down and you need to get it repaired or replaced by the manufacturer or its approved service provider. Remember to complete your product registration card and send it back to the manufacturer, or fill in the required registration online, otherwise your warranty may not be valid.

Because of the importance of receipts and warranties, they should be categorised as “Receipts and Warrantiesâ€