If you’re a homeowner or commercial property owner, you’ve likely experienced some type of water damage at your property and understand the stress of property damage remediation. Unfortunately, leaks, floods, and natural disasters don’t choose the most opportune times to visit. Dealing with the stress of restoring your home on top of the stresses of everyday life can be, well, a lot. The quicker you can find a water damage restoration company to help you, the quicker you can go back to living your life.
The last thing you want to do while worrying about the potential damage to your possessions and home after a water damage event is to spend hours figuring out the best water damage restoration company to hire. Oftentimes, people in this situation are inclined to go with whichever vendor their insurance company recommends. However, you don’t want to settle for a flood and water damage restoration company that won’t deliver quality work. It’s essential that you hire reliable professionals who’ll do the job right the first time. While it may seem like the easiest thing to do is to choose any random water damage restoration company, making the wrong decision can make the restoration process much more complicated.
Below, we offer a guide to help you choose the best water damage restoration company for you. Some key things to consider while searching for a local restoration provider are:
- Years of Experience
- Proximity and Availability
- Licenses and Insurance
- Positive Reviews
Key Traits to Consider When Evaluating Water Cleanup and Restoration Teams
There are some key traits to look for in a water damage restoration company for hire. If a water damage restoration company possesses all of the below traits, you have likely found a company you can trust to restore your house in a quick, comprehensive, and efficient manner.
Years of Experience
Experience is the number one thing you should look for when you need restoration work done.
The longer a company has been in business, the greater the odds they’ll know how to address your home’s specific water damage efficiently and effectively. There is huge value in finding a restoration company that has seen it all, ensuring that no matter what water damage has struck your house, they’ll be able to build a plan from prior experience that will guarantee success.
Second, a company can only remain in business for a long time if it does right by its customers. When you hire a company to clean up a flood or water damage on your property, you need to hire a team that will perform fast, efficient, and thorough work. A company that delivers consistently poor results won’t have the reputation that allows them to stay in business very long.
Most companies will list their years in business on their website, making it easy to evaluate their experience.
Proximity & Availability
When you have water damage on your property, you need help fast. No property owner can afford to wait for assistance when a flood inflicts catastrophic damage upon their home. The longer the structures on your property and your possessions are wet, the greater the damage. Therefore, it is important that the water damage restoration service you choose is able to arrive quickly. Ideally, the water damage restoration company you choose should be available 24/7 and located close enough to your home or business so that they can arrive in less than 60 minutes from being called. Make sure you find a company that is located nearby and has a rapid and reputable response time. Restoration companies will usually provide information on their response time on their website, and customer reviews can help back this information up as well.
Licenses & Insurance
Any time you hire someone to work on your property, it’s important to select a business with all the necessary licenses and insurance policies. The last thing you want is a business that is not certified to perform water damage restoration services. A good starting point is checking to see if the company is Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) certified. Working with a company with restoration certification can give you peace of mind knowing that you’re hiring genuinely qualified restoration techs. Insurance, on the other hand, protects you just in case something goes wrong during the restoration effort. Most companies will provide certification and insurance information on their website to provide their customers with peace of mind.
Positive Reviews
Before deciding on a water damage repair service, take some time to read a few online reviews on sites like Google, Yelp, and the BBB. This will give you insight into the quality of the service from real customers. You should look for a business with a 4.5-star average ranking or higher, signifying high customer satisfaction with their water damage cleanup experience.
The Risks of Choosing the Wrong Water Damage Restoration Company
What’s the worst that could happen if you choose the wrong water damage restoration company? Well, several things. Making an uninformed decision can negatively affect not only your home and your personal possessions, but your health as well. Below are some of the risks of not taking the time to choose the right water damage restoration company.
Mold Growth That Is Hazardous to Your Health
If your chosen water damage restoration company does not do a thorough job, they may leave moist areas in your home that provide the perfect breeding ground for mold. Mold poses many health risks, especially for those living with mold for an extended period of time. Some possible health issues caused by mold include allergic reactions or issues with breathing. The right restoration vendor will thoroughly map all potential areas for moisture before they start the job, ensuring dehumidification in these areas, and making sure they’ve done thorough mold remediation.
Provides an Inaccurate Timeline That Puts Your Life in Flux
A reliable water damage restoration company should provide its customers with an accurate timeline for all services to be completed. Often restoration vendors are too optimistic, and this could negatively affect your life, putting your life in a state of flux for longer than is necessary or planned.
Takes Advantage of You During a Stressful Time
It can be easy to feel frazzled during such a chaotic time. The wrong water damage restoration company may take advantage of this, either by overcharging you or by working without a sense of urgency. In some cases, the company may even take off before the restoration project is complete, leaving you to try to put your house and life back together on your own.
Does Not Thoroughly Clean and Sanitize Your House
An essential part of the Category 2 or 3 water damage restoration process is thoroughly cleaning and sanitizing your home. Category 2 or 3 water could contain harmful bacteria left in your home if not properly treated and sanitized. Your insurance should cover this step, but it is up to you to ensure that the restoration vendor covers it when Category 2 or 3 water is involved. Even Category 1 water, if left untreated for an extended time, can turn into Category 2 or 3 water and cause further damage to your home.
Is Your Property in San Diego? Certified Restoration is the Right Water Damage Restoration Company For You!
If you live in San Diego and require water damage restoration services, Certified Restoration is the right choice. We offer 24/7 emergency response, have an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau, boast over 100 5-star ratings on Yelp, and Google, and we guarantee our results. We are fully licensed, insured, & IICRC certified. If you are looking for a trustworthy, responsive, and professional water damage restoration company, contact Certified Restoration today by calling (619) 234-2500.
We get the job done fast and right so you can get on with your life.
“Disclaimer: This article is for general information ONLY and is not intended to be legal, medical, or scientific advice. The proper approach to each project must be determined on a case-by-case basis. Certified Restoration always recommends that you call a certified restoration professional, especially when there are children, elderly, or individuals with health conditions residing in the property. “