Plumbing and Leak Detection
Any leak or plumbing issue can lead to major problems to your home. Not only are your home and belongings affected by water, mold, and mildew, but your physical health and safety are also compromised. For these reasons, water damage requires an immediate course of action, and Your Home Expert is a reputable company to hire to identify a leak detection or plumbing problem and provide an effective solution in restoring your home back to its original state. Call Your home Expert!
Mitigation
Weather conditions such as storms, tornadoes, hail, and flash floods can cause severe damage to your home. That’s why it is important to turn to Your Home Expert to mitigate the water damage. We have experts to assess the problem, discuss the severity of the damage so you can make an informed decision in properly addressing the problem, make all necessary repairs and finally, restore your home back to working order. Our team of professionals are equipped with experience and resources to detect, evaluate, repair, and restore bringing your home back to a clean, dry, safe living environment. Call Your Home Expert!
Contact Your Home Expert for an Emergency Situation
As a homeowner, it’s crucial to spot the signs of water damage or potential water damage. Water damage due to heavy storms, tornadoes, hail, flash floods, weakened roof, leaky or broken pipes, or overflowing appliances create an undesired and stressful emergency situation. Not only does it disrupt your life, but it also threatens the safety and health of your family and poses problems to the foundation of your property. The longer your property and possessions are left exposed to wet conditions, the more potential for deadly mold and mildew to grow which will lead to more hazardous conditions. Some water damage conditions such as toilet overflows and sewage backups create terrible odors. It’s important to immediately address the situation to reduce any further damages to your home and remedy the problem with effective water restoration solutions. We are available 24/7 to handle any emergency situation, provide free home water damage restoration estimates, are fully insured for your protection, work directly with all insurance companies and are licensed to work on any water damage restoration project.What to do When Dealing with Water Damage
Are you experiencing a case of water damage in your home leaving you frustrated, scared, and overwhelmed? Are you wondering what immediate steps you need to take to confront your disaster claim? If you and your family are in an emergency situation due to water damage, you probably have a variety of questions such as:
- What type of company can help me fix the damages of my home?
- Do I need to contact my insurance company?
- Will my insurance cover the expenses of my home damages?
- Should I keep written and/or photographical records of the damages?
- Who can help me repair and restore my home?
First, there are disaster relief or water restoration companies that provide emergency assistance helping you through every step of the process. They remove and clean up the damage, collect any evidence relevant to the situation at hand, work with your insurance company to get your claim approved and provide services in restoring your home back to normal.
As you probably already know, there are specific steps of the process when dealing with any home disaster and with the insurance company, but you may not know what those steps are or in what order to approach the process. The following is a step-by-step process of what you should do for your disaster insurance claim.
Step 1: Act instead of reacting!
It is important to stay calm and take immediate action with any emergency. The first and most important thing to do is to make sure that you and your family are safe. Find a safe location that will not put you and family in any physical danger or at health risk. Depending on the severity of the disaster, you should either go to a room or area that is away from the damages or leave your home.
If a pipe burst and is flooding your home, you should turn off the water from either the source itself or from the main supply but only if it’s within your reach and will not put in danger. If you’re experiencing flooding in your home due to an overflowing river and you’re unable to leave your home, you should go to the top floor or on the roof and calmly wait for assistance.
If you’re in danger, need medical assistance or a crime has been committed, you should call the police immediately. And remember, even though you’re probably experiencing a mixed of emotions, it is essential to not react resulting in poor judgement; instead, act on the problem that will get you and your family to safety, provide the assistance you need and resolve your situation.
Step 2: Evaluate the damages of your home.
After you tend to the safety and well-being of your family, it is important to review the situation and assess the damages of your home. Safety should still be your main priority but if your home is safe enough to go back inside, then you need to think about what happened and find out what has been damaged. Although the disaster relief company and your insurance will conduct a complete assessment of the damages, any information you have will help you discuss the problem with the disaster relief company. Some questions that can guide you when assessing the problem are:
- Where are the damages in my home?
- What is the cause of the damages?
- What specific areas of my home are damaged? Are there broken windows? Are there holes in the roof or in the walls, or cracks in the walls or ceiling?
It would be a good idea to document your assessment of the damages of your home. You can also take pictures as substantial evidence. The disaster relief company will take multiple photographs of the damages but you providing written documentation and pictures of the damages can also help in demonstrating proof of disaster and having your claim approved.
Another thing to keep in mind is to keep everything in its present condition for a thorough, proper assessment and documentation. In other words, do not clean up any messes. Your insurance company requires detailed documentation of the damages and the overall disaster and if you clean up without providing documentation as evidence of the disaster, your insurance company may deny your claim.
Step 3: Contact your local disaster/water restoration company.
When a home disaster of any kind occurs, a homeowner usually calls his/her insurance company first. Although it is important to call your insurance company within a reasonable amount of time, you should call a disaster or water restoration company first. Here are some valid reasons why:
- A disaster or water restoration company has the experience and resources to properly assess the damages of your home. A professional can guide you throughout the process including whether you should go through your insurance or not. You need to keep in mind that some insurances have high deductibles, and you shouldn’t open a claim if the damages are under that amount. In addition, you want to avoid of having your insurance rate increase or policy terminated if you have filed previous claims.
- A disaster or water restoration company has qualified experts to handle your situation from beginning to end. Once you make an initial assessment of the damages, decide whether to go through your insurance or not and open a claim, the disaster relief company or your water restoration company will take the rest of the bulk off your shoulders and do damage control. They will collect proof of evidence, clean up the mess, review estimates, work with your insurance company in getting your claim approved, help to get your claim money, and rebuild and restore your home back to its previous condition. Your Home Expert has experience in dealing with disaster claims and they work with the insurance company so that your experience is hassle-free. Let us take care of you so you can take care of your family during this time of need!
At this point, you’re probably wondering how to find a disaster or water restoration company and the right one to best fit your needs. Before you make your selection, it would be wise to research companies in your area and review your options. You can simply do a Google search to find disaster relief companies located in your city or county. You can also narrow it down to companies that handle the type of services you need, and this would ultimately depend on your disaster situation. For example, if you have water damage in your home, you can look up “water restoration companies”; if you have broken pipes or leaks, you can also look up “leak detection services”; with any water damage, you need to call an expert to prevent further damages to your home so you can look up “mitigation services”.
Here are some key points to keep in mind when choosing a company in providing the services you need:
- 24/7 service with immediate assistance.
- Certified, trained experts.
- A decent and honest reputation.
- A local company.
- A company that values its customers.
- A company that takes pride in the work they do.
When reviewing your list of options, make sure you take the necessary time to do a thorough search, one that will ultimately help you make an informed decision in fulfilling your needs.
Step 4: Contact your insurance company.
Before calling your insurance company, your disaster relief or water restoration company needs to assess the damages first to pass that information on to your insurance company. Once the assessment is made and you have a clear idea of your situation, you can then call your insurance company.
As a homeowner, you probably have a lot of questions, one of them concerning your insurance coverage. Are you covered under your insurance policy? Honestly, this depends on what your insurance covers. Most insurance policies cover you for water damage coming from inside of your home such as burst pipes or accidental fires, but many insurances don’t cover you for water damage due to river floods. Many also don’t cover your home if you have mold, or wear and tear problems in your home.
It's important to discuss your insurance policy with your insurance company, and if you have a reliable, informative insurance agent, he/she should be able to tell you about the details of your policy and if you are covered for your home damages.
However, whether you are covered or not also depends on other factors such as the source and cause of the damages. This is ultimately determined by your insurance.
Another important question regarding your insurance coverage is: How much of your home damages will be covered by your insurance? Your insurance may cover all the damages, but this is not the same as receiving a full reimbursement of the expenses to fix, rebuild and restore your home. To give you an example, your kitchen is damaged due to a fire, and you need a kitchen remodel. Your insurance agrees to cover for all the damages, but they will also negotiate on the cost to remodel your kitchen. The cost of your kitchen in restoring it back to its original condition and how long you’ve had it play a part in determining how much you will get back. Instead of your insurance paying for all expenses, they will only pay a portion of the total expenses – 50% or 75%.
For this reason, it is recommended to find a disaster relief company on your own instead of turning to the company that your insurance would provide. You will most likely get a better deal and a better service. Turn to Your Home Expert when you have a home emergency. We can guide you throughout the process and help you get back the most from your claim.
The following are other important things to know regarding your insurance company:
- As soon as you contact the disaster relief company, you need to call your insurance company. The longer you wait to contact your insurance company, the more you’re at risk of having your claim rejected.
- In the case that you must leave your home, your insurance company may cover your outside expenses. For example, if your bathroom is out-of-order, then your home is not a suitable place to reside in and therefore, you would have to make other lodging and living arrangements. If your kitchen is out-of-order, then you would have to make other eating arrangements. If you are in this type of situation, speak to your insurance company about this and remember to save all receipts for proof.
- Most claims are processed within 2 to 6 weeks; however, it’s possible that it may take longer. For this reason, make sure you have a reputable disaster relief or water restoration company that can help you throughout the process.
- Your insurance company will encourage you to work with a company of their preference to handle your situation, but you are under no obligation to do it. It’s your decision to work with a company that you feel would best suit your needs.
- Your insurance rates will go up after you open a claim. This may take six months to a year to see those increased rates.
Step 5: Mitigate and cleanup.
It is important to mitigate and clean up the damaged areas of your home to prevent further damages, mold, theft, and costly expenses. Once again, you shouldn’t do the cleanup. It’s time-consuming, exhausting and above all, the basic home clean-up will not suit the needs of your home in restoring it back to normal. A proper, professional cleanup including mitigation is required to get your home back on track.
Your disaster relief company will tend to the damages of your home as soon as possible. They will begin the mitigation process by boarding up broken windows and covering holes of the roof or walls. This will prevent further water damage and provide safety and privacy temporarily. They will also work on drying out the areas of your home that are exposed to water and moisture. This will prevent mold and mildew from occurring.
Your Home expert provides water restoration and mitigation services. Contact us to aid you through the process. Not only do we have professional experience to carry out your claim, but we also have trained experts to repair, rebuild and restore your home.
Step 6: Gathering relevant information
As previously mentioned, it is important to gather all information as evidence valuable to your specific situation. Even though it is a good idea to collect this information on your own, the disaster relief company will not only collect information but will collect the right information. As experts in these types of situations, they know what to look for and what to show as evidence to the insurance company. In the end, this will help you with your claim. Before, during and after pictures, for example, are the most important pieces of evidence because they provide visual proof of the damages, the mitigation and cleanup process and how everything looks following the process. Before pictures would include all damaged areas such as soaked furniture and carpets; during pictures would include the process used to mitigate and clean up the mess; after pictures would include how the damaged areas look after the mitigation and cleanup process.
Additional information or evidence may be required to support your claim. You may need to gather and show one or more of the following depending on your specific situation:
- Official police or fire department report or a report from first responder, which would most likely be the disaster relief or water restoration company.
- Report from plumber.
- Any relevant scientific data such as moisture, atmospheric, and dehumidifier readings.
- A detailed report or inventory of damaged items.
Rely on your disaster relief company to help you gather the right evidence in presenting your claim to your insurance company. Your Home Expert has handled 800 claims, so they know the ins and outs of how the claim process works. Don’t go through this long process alone – hire certified, trained experts to handle the process from beginning to end!
Step 7: Meeting with insurance adjuster
Between 48 hours to 2 weeks, the insurance adjuster will visit your home and discuss your claim with you. As a representative of your insurance company, the insurance adjuster will thoroughly investigate your claim and decide if your policy will cover your home damages and how much should be covered. The investigation includes the following:
- A home inspection of the damages and/or cleanup.
- A home inspection to determine the cause or source of the damages, which determines your insurance coverage for those damages.
- A professional interview with the homeowner or other witnesses of the disaster.
- A review or research of additional evidence such as police reports and other relevant documents of the claim.
Again, the disaster relief company can advise you prior to your meeting with the insurance adjuster so that you’re prepared in providing useful information and answering questions to support your claim. They can also assist you with this step of the process by discussing your situation/claim with your insurance company.
Step 8: Negotiation.
At the time of negotiation, the insurance adjuster will offer a specific amount that the insurance should pay. Since the insurance adjuster represents the insurance company, they look out for their interests and will try to pay as little as possible. On the other hand, the disaster relief company is on your side and looks out for your interests. That’s why it’s important to work with an honest restoration company, one that will properly guide you and defend your claim. They are there to gather information and estimates to provide a higher, more realistic amount to cover the expenses of the damages. In the end, the final amount is made upon negotiation where you and the insurance adjuster come to a mutual agreement.
Step 9: Claim Money
Once you and the insurance adjuster come to a mutual agreement regarding your claim money, the insurance will give you a check giving you the financial means to pay for repairing, rebuilding, and restoring expenses.
There are different ways of how you may receive your claim money depending on whether you’re a homeowner with a mortgage or a homeowner free and clear. If you’re a homeowner with a mortgage and that mortgage is over $10,000, your insurance company will most likely make the check out to both the homeowner and the mortgage company. If you’re a homeowner without a mortgage, the insurance company will make it out to the homeowner and send it to the homeowner. However, there are times when the insurance company makes out a check for emergency services and another check for repairs so in this case, compensation goes directly to the company providing those services.
Step 10: Repair and restore your home.
Once you receive your claim money, you can finally begin the process in repairing and restoring your home back to normal. However, even though a disaster relief company will advise you in getting the most from your insurance company, you will most likely have to pay for some of the expenses. This is because depreciation of lost/damaged items plays a huge factor.
This is ultimately the time to turn to a reliable, professional restoration team. The primary purpose of a disaster relief company is to provide emergency assistance in helping victims of the disaster and cleaning up but not all relief companies provide home repair and upgrade assistance. Fortunately, there are restoration companies that provide high-quality, effective services such as home remodeling, water restoration, roofing, and storm damage services. Your Home Expert not only provides disaster relief services, but they also provide restoration and home improvement services. That’s the perk of turning to Your Home Expert. They carry you throughout the entire process from assessing the damages to restoring your home back to normal. Restoring your home means restoring your life back to normal!
This is also the time to turn your situation into a positive experience and do more than just restoring and/or upgrading your home – transform your home into your “dream house”!
5 Main Tips When Handling Insurance Disaster Claims
The following are 5 useful tips when handling insurance disaster claims:
- Contacting a disaster relief company is your priority on your “must do” list. As soon as you experience a home disaster, call a relief company. They will make a proper assessment of the damages and help you in deciding if you should go through the insurance or not. They will also guide you to make better decisions that would suit your interests.
- Although you’re probably stressed and overwhelmed, you must start the process immediately following the disaster. This is to prevent further damage to your home and to begin the process with the insurance company for coverage of the damages. At this point, you can turn to the disaster relief company to help you with the process. Your Home Expert offers restoration and home remodeling services. They have on-call professionals to handle disaster claims and work directly with the insurance company to get your claim approved.
- You need evidence of the damages to get the most out of your insurance claim. Taking pictures provides visual proof of your home damages so it’s important to have these pictures ready, and as many as possible. The disaster relief company will also take several pictures of the damages and the cleanup process for the insurance company to view.
- Again, the insurance company is out for their own interests and not yours, so you need to find a suitable disaster relief company that knows how to take control of the situation and help you get the most out of your insurance claim. You need an experienced company that knows how to approach a situation following a disaster including how to deal with the insurance company. Your Home Expert has a team of professionals who knows how to defend disaster claims. Call Your Home Expert today!
The process following a home disaster can be long, frustrating, and emotionally draining; however, the step-by-step process is crucial in getting the job done right and seeing results in your favor. For this reason, you must remain calm and be patient. The disaster relief company is there to guide you along the way and provide relevant updates. As an IICRC certified company for water restoration and award-winning as one of the best remodeling contractors in Carrollton, Your Home Expert has the team, resources, and skills to help you with every step of the process.
How to Prepare Yourself for a Disaster Insurance Claim
There’s a lot to process when disaster strikes your home. Opening a claim with your insurance company is a major step of the process to receive your claim money, and that’s why you should be as prepared as possible for if or when an unexpected disaster occurs. Whether you’ve gone through the process before or you’re new to the process, here are some things you can do (and should do) to better prepare yourself for a possible claim in the future:
- Do your research and find a disaster relief company before disaster hits your home.
At the time of a home disaster, you will probably experience a mixed of emotions which may cloud your right judgement in finding a proper company to help you with your situation. In addition, you may not have the necessary time to do proper research in finding a suitable company to fulfill your needs. For these reasons, it would be best to prepare yourself ahead of time and review your options. Taking the time to do a thorough research will enable you to weigh out your options and choose a company that you feel would fit your needs. Having a reputable company in your area can put you at ease knowing that you have a “go-to-person” if or when disaster hits your home.
- Do a complete review of your insurance policy and understand your coverage.
You’re probably one of many who don’t know the details of your insurance policy (what your insurance does or doesn’t cover). Why have insurance if you don’t know how it can protect you and your home? If you have home insurance and you probably do, it’s important to know what your insurance covers. Take the time to review your insurance policy to know what it covers if or when a home disaster occurs. Not only should you know what your insurance covers, but you should also understand the terms of your policy. Consult a representative to answer your questions, provide options and clarify any misunderstanding. When reviewing your policy, you may realize that you need extra coverage depending on your location and possible circumstances so make sure you have the coverage you need to protect your family and home. For example, if you live in an area that often experiences flooding, add this coverage to your policy.
- Keep track of saved receipts of your belongings for future reference.
Your home is probably one of the most valuable assets you own. Your belongings are also your valuable possessions that complement your living space, provide comfort and convenience, and/or fulfill your every-day needs. That’s why you should keep record of your most expensive and valuable belongings. Keeping track of saved receipts provides documentation of the exact price and the day of purchase which is needed to determine depreciation value of those items. You should also take it one step further and keep a digital documentation of your belongings just in case your paper receipts are damaged in a fire or flooding. With today’s growing technology, there are applications and cloud-based storage solutions that can keep track of receipts. This provides a secured and paperless alternative so if your paper receipts get lost or damaged, you have a back-up to show proof of your purchased items.
Your Home Expert
Your Home Expert is a unique “one-stop-shop” for making beautiful home transformations. We offer a wide variety of services including water damage restoration, home remodeling, roofing/storm damage services and window treatments.
At the moment of a disaster or emergency, we assess the immediate problem, provide a course-of-action that will resolve the issue and accompany our clients throughout the process. We mitigate and extract further damages. In addition, we work together with insurance companies to get the work covered using the proper equipment and tools. We document all information relevant to the problem and show proof of exact damages to help the insured with home design services and home repairs with experienced professionals in the industry.
Your Home Expert is not just a “preferred provider” but a professional company serving you and your needs at the time of disaster and carrying out those services to restore your home back to new. We’ve handled numerous disaster and insurance claims, so we know the steps of the process. However, this guide breaks down the process detailing what you should do, what you should expect and what you can do in preparation of an unexpected disaster affecting your home. If you have experienced or are prone to heavy storms, tornadoes, hail, or flash floods in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, call Your Home Expert to handle your disaster and insurance claim. We also have trained professionals to restore your home back to normal from water damage, remodel your home, make home repairs, and provide window treatments. Contact us any time during the day or night at (469) 777-8834. Rely on us to be your home expert!
