10 Quick Tips to Speed Up Your Property Loss Restoration

When a business is facing a property damage loss, whether that’s due to a pipe burst or a major hurricane, it’s easy to lose sight of the basic elements that ensure a quick recovery. Sometimes the day-to-day grind of tasks can take our focus off making sure we are prepared for such events. So, to refresh your knowledge, we’re offering 10 quick tips to keep you ready for any property loss.

When a business suffers a small or large catastrophe, response time is critical. In large part, that’s because almost every incident involves water damage—and the longer it stays in the facility, the greater the potential for secondary damage and conditions that foster mold growth and poor air quality. If you can prevent ongoing damage, you can save money and get back up and running much faster.

Also, every day a business is closed, it is losing money, usually lots of it. The revenue that is lost on a large facility dwarfs the cost to have an experienced contractor ready to respond with the necessary staff and equipment. Even one less day with the doors shut can make a major difference to the bottom line.

Speed Up Your Recovery Time by…

1. Starting with a great local restoration contractor. Make sure you always have an experienced local restoration contractor signed up in advance and ready to respond in the event of a loss. With many losses, such as a water loss, time is of the essence. Don’t wait until you have a loss to locate, interview and hire a restoration contractor!

2. Assessing, mitigating and reporting the loss. Make sure you document and assess the extent of damage with photographs and videos. You also need to mitigate the loss by contacting your restoration contractor immediately and taking any precautions to minimize the damages. Don’t forget to report the loss to your insurance carrier as well. Your restoration contractor will help determine what will need to be dried, restored, demolished, and/or reconstructed. They will also work with a third party on developing a moisture map of damages in the event of a large loss.

3. Bringing in equipment ASAP. The restoration contractor should act quickly and is aiming to decrease the interior humidity as quickly as possible. The longer it takes to reduce the interior humidity, the greater the risk of secondary damage including, but not limited to splitting wood and mold. It may be necessary to supplement with portable heaters or AC units, if necessary, to regulate the temperature as well.

4. Meeting with the project manager. Make sure you meet with the project manager for the restoration contractor and understand the sequence of tasks, timing and the people and equipment needed on site to perform the entire job from start to finish.

5. Building a good relationship with insurance adjusters. An experienced restoration contractor often knows the key people working for major insurance carriers in your area. The contractor should understand the claims process for insurance-related repairs and what the provider requires and usually covers. The contractor’s standard of care for mitigation should follow the Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) S500 guidelines.

6. Considering a contractor offering a full range of services. Some contractors provide only mitigation or dry out services. Consider whether a contractor continuing the project through complete reconstruction would be a valuable and logical next step for your company. Many customers value the convenience of working with one company from start to finish rather than switching mid-job or having several different contractors involved in the loss. This also decreases the finger pointing and blame between contractors when a project does not go as planned.

7. Making sure the contractor is licensed and certified. The contractor should be licensed in your state and certified by industry associations such as IICRC, ACAC or others with technicians with WRT, AMRT, and ICRA certifications depending on the environment and type of work to be completed. Also, you should consider the experience of the contractor and the type and size of projects they have completed.

8. Making sure the contractor is experienced and knowledgeable. A good restoration contractor can also help clients and adjusters understand the nature of how humidity, temperature, airflow, and time all impact the drying of building materials. They should be knowledgeable in drying equipment and techniques as well as the restoration of the entire property to its pre-loss condition.

9. Making sure the contractor treats each customer as its top priority. A good restoration contractor should provide a fast response time while also meeting industry performance standards. They should do quality work and have a viable solution to the problems that may arise.

10. Getting a restoration contractor signed up now! Getting signed up with a good restoration contractor should be a no cost item. The contractor should meet with you and your team, determine the properties to be covered under a response plan, walk the facilities and assess the current conditions of those facilities, recommend changes or mitigation plans to properly protect those facilities in the event of a loss, and get a copy of your insurance policy. Often a meeting with the client, their counsel or public adjuster, the contractor and insurance agent before a loss occurs helps everyone to get on the same page in the event of a loss. This saves valuable time when time is of the essence later.