Running a business is a juggling act. From managing employees to keeping customers happy, there’s always something demanding attention. But what about your physical assets—the desks, computers, tools, office equipment, and even the kitchen fridge? Do you know exactly what your company currently owns, where it all is, and what everything’s worth? Without a comprehensive asset register, it won’t be easy.
What Is an Asset Register?
An asset register is simply a detailed list of the assets owned by a business. It can be stored in paper format (though that’s not ideal) or electronically. The key is to keep it safe, up to date and easily accessible.
Why are Asset Registers Essential?
Asset registers are important for financial reporting and tax purposes but many businesses don’t realise the importance of an asset register until they need it—often in the middle of a crisis or emergency.
If your business operates across multiple sites, including staff who work remotely, keeping tabs on assets can be even more tricky. Creating a reliable asset register allows you to monitor equipment, ensuring nothing is misplaced, lost, or forgotten—especially valuable for companies with hybrid working or offsite storage facilities.
Insurance Protection
UK insurers pay out at least £22 million per day in business insurance claims. Yet, it's estimated that more than half of SMEs have stopped buying one or more types of business insurance. Without an accurate record of your assets, you could be leaving your business vulnerable.
An Asset Register Helps you:
- Accurately assess the value of what you own.
- Ensure you have adequate insurance coverage.
- Assess financial loss in the event of theft, fire, damage, or disaster.
- Speed up insurance claims so you can quickly provide the necessary details.
- Keep track of equipment across multiple locations and teams.
- Identify any lost, missing or unreturned items.
- Review assets that need servicing, maintenance or replacement.
What Should be Included in an Asset Register?
For an asset register to be truly useful, it must be accurate, detailed, and regularly updated with a current list of all the assets your business owns. Don’t just focus on the expensive items—smaller, lower-value assets such as monitors, keyboards and headsets add up quickly.
How to Create an Asset Register
Creating an asset register isn’t complicated - however the real challenge is ensuring the information is accurately recorded, up to date, linked to the right employees, and simple to manage. Secure storage is also important, as well as making sure your register is easily accessible and can be organised from one central location.
Digital vs. Manual Asset Registers
Many businesses start with spreadsheets, but these can become difficult to manage over time and potentially lead to human errors that may carry significant consequences for an organisation. A digital system - such as WorkSmarter’s new integrated Asset Register feature - offers a more efficient and streamlined solution.
Get Full Control
With WorkSmarter you have full control without unnecessary admin. It’s simple to record, issue, track and return assets from your account, with instant visibility on who has what and when it’s due back. Issue the item to individual or multiple members of your team, without having to create a new asset every time. Get automatic reminders for timely returns.
- Log, issue, track and manage return of assets across teams and multiple locations.
- Add return and warranty expiry dates; get notifications and alerts.
- Generate instant, detailed reports.
- Set custom User Permissions for secure access and collaboration.
- Easy search functionality.
- Clear itemised lists with at-a-glance visual indicators.
- One-click returns.
