Water Damage & Mitigation

The cost for a professional water damage repair contractor typically ranges from $1,500 to $5,000 for mitigation and drying equipment. However, prices can escalate significantly if the damage is extensive or widespread, potentially exceeding $5,000. 

Every policy is different. The easiest way to answer whether or not a water damage will be covered by insurance is if the damage was sudden and/or accidental. If the answer is yes, then you likely can get at least some if not all of the cost covered by insurance. 

There are exclusions on every policy such as floods not being covered but a restoration contractor should be provide advice regarding the likelihood of you claim being covered. 

No, your insurance carrier should not expect emergency service work to be delayed for them to see the project in person. Work should begin immediately, and the process should be fully documented. This ensures your insurer can see everything through the documentation. It is the carrier's obligation to get the policy holder back to pre-loss conditions and that typically includes paying outside contractors for work performed to get them there. 

Many people do not have flood insurance unless they live or work in flood-prone areas. Even then, FEMA policies typically cover only a fraction of mitigation costs, around 50-60%. For example, if flooding damages lower kitchen cabinets, FEMA might only cover the replacement of those cabinets, leaving the upper cabinets mismatched.

Similarly, if your basement floods, you may need to add a rider for sump pump failure to your policy since it is a common cause of such incidents. Without this coverage, you could face significant out-of-pocket expenses for repairs.

 Depending on the size of the water damage restoration, the mitigation process will typically take between 3 and 10 days. The vast majority of projects are on the lower end of that range. Large jobs will have additional stabilisation time for additional services such as asbestos samples being run, dumpster/storage pod ordering, demolition completion, etc. 

 With just 24-48 hours after water damage, mold can begin to grow on any organic material, making swift action crucial.  Restore & Repel, will address small amounts of mold during water mitigation. However, once mold starts to colonize, the process shifts from water damage restoration to mold remediation. This transition can increase costs and create further inconvenience, as only technicians in personal protective equipment (PPE) can enter the affected area. To learn more about the mold remediation process, please reach out for additional information. 

The short answer is, you can try. For small water intrusions and spills you may be able to clean it up yourself.

If the structure is won’t dry out on its own you will need to rent out appropriate drying equipment. Once you consider the time spent and costs to rent equipment you may find the bill similar to what you would have paid a professional, and professionals come with the right tools and experience to do the job efficiently and effectively.

On large scale jobs, we highly advise you do not try to handle the water damage restoration yourself. If the job is not done properly you could be left with mold issues and other risks. When costs for water damage restoration are often covered by insurance, there is no reason to try and do it yourself.

Once you have dealt with the impact of home or business water damage, it is understandable you want to avoid it in the future. Here are some helpful steps to minimize the risk of water damage in the future and to prevent issues occurring:

• Hire a plumber to check your drain lines with a camera and remove any build-up.
• Replace old or malfunctioning appliances, especially water heaters.
• Annual maintenance and servicing of your AC unit
• Arrange a roof inspection and commit to any necessary and recommended maintenance
• If you have a sump pump have it regularly inspected and invest in a battery powered backup
• Invest in flood sensors near your appliances and water damage prone areas and do it yourself.