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When water damage occurs in your home or business, the results
can be devastating. It is important to begin the
clean up process as
soon as possible. Water left standing for more than 24
hours has the potential to cause serious
health problems.
Qualified Water Damage Restoration
It is equally important to choose the right company to handle water damage restoration. As devastating as the water damage itself can be, matters can be made considerably worse by hiring the wrong company to perform the water damage restoration work. Al’s Carpet Cleaning and Restoration has the largest inventory of drying equipment in Southern Oregon to quickly dry your home or business to its pre-loss condition, which helps prevent growth of microorganisms that can cause health or structural damage in the future. We have penetrating, non-penetrating moisture-detection equipment that can find hidden moisture inside of walls that is not visibly apparent, so that we are able to completely dry the structure with as little damage to the structure as possible. Al’s Carpet Cleaning and Restoration combines education with years of experience.
Homeowner’s Bill of Rights
Your Rights as a Homeowner
- Oregon law states that only the owner of a home can authorize work to be done on that property.
- If you choose us to complete the work on your home we work for you.
- The contractor that your insurance company may want you to use will be loyal to the insurance company because that is where their income comes from.
Their goals may or may not be the same as yours.
- “As an insurance “preferred vendor” the contractor does not have free rein
to complete a restoration as they see fit. The insurance company has the
final word. Often the insurer will limit the allowable reimbursement or
the scope of repairs even if the property owner or contractor believes
more extensive work is necessary..” Walter Lumpp, Director of the NIR (National
Institute of Restoration).
- All licensed general contractors (which we are) work is guaranteed by way of the $20,000.00 bond that is required by Oregon state law.
- We offer you the convenience of letting us complete all aspects of the job,
bill your insurance company for you, and offer you the same quality
service we have been giving our customers since 1977.
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What if I don’t have enough money to pay my deductible?
We can work out a payment
schedule for you deductable that fits your budget. On most jobs we can make
arrangements to cover part or all of your deductable depending on the amount
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What do I do if my insurance company says they have a “preferred” contractor for me to
use instead of you?
In the state of Oregon
only the homeowner can choose and authorize a company to work on their home
so it is your choice and yours only. The insurance company may have a preferred
contractor and there is only one reason for this: to save the insurance company
money. A contractor that gets their work from the insurance company will
be loyal to that company. Their goals and specifications may not be the same
as yours. We work for you and only you. All contractors licensed in the
state of Oregon by way of a bond essentially give a guarantee to the homeowner
for defects in workmanship. In addition to that we will match any guarantee
offered by your insurance company in writing.
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Who should call my insurance company?
We will bill your insurance
company directly for any covered losses as well as contacting your insurance
company and starting the claim process for you. It can be a very involved
process and we do it everyday so feel free to contact us about any question
you may have. It is best to wait until we are on the job so we can give a
detailed and professional account to the insurance company.
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Will my insurance company raise my rates if I file a claim?
It is possible they may
raise your rates. If you have not filed a claim in the last and the claim
is less than $10,000.00 it is less likely they will raise your rates but
this is just an example and every insurance company is different. There
are hundreds of insurance companies in Oregon that provide homeowners insurance
so you have many options if they do. If you have a 500.00 deductable and
the loss is 600.00 I would not recommend filing a claim. The best way to
determine which way to proceed is to call us for a free inspection to see
if it is worthwhile to file a claim.
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What is mitigation?
Work covered by insurance
is usually divided into three parts: Mitigation, Contents and Reconstruction.
Mitigation is any work that involves the urgent part of the job that prevents
further damage such as water extraction, applying a disinfectant to help
prevent mold growth, setting up drying equipment to dry the carpet walls
and floors. Contents relates to damage to you personal items that may have
been damaged and this is handled between you and your adjuster but your insurance
company may ask us to determine the amount of damage and value of the items.
Reconstruction is the work needed to put your home back to the pre loss condition.
We usually write the bid for reconstruction and submit it to the insurance
company, negotiate an agreement on price and extent of repairs with the insurance
company, and then go over the contract and details with you before work begins.
This way there are no surprises and everyone is on the same page.
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When will an adjuster look at my damaged home?
That depends on how busy
they are, how large the loss is and the individual insurance company. On
many jobs the insurance company relies on us for diagrams, pictures, and
a detailed estimate of repairs and then settles the loss without sending
an adjuster to the job. But if an adjuster is sent you can figure between
2 and 5 days on the average.
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Should I leave the drying equipment running at night?
The drying equipment should
stay on 24 hours a day until one of our technicians has determined that your
home is dry to the “dry standard”. We determine this using advanced moisture
detectors such as penetrating meters, sonic non penetrating meters, and infrared
cameras. Just because it looks dry doesn’t mean it IS dry. Hidden pockets
of moisture can cause problems later if not dried correctly.
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What if I can’t stay in my home due to the damage?
Most insurance policies
have coverage for temporary housing and food costs. Your agent or adjuster
can help you with this.
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How long will it take to complete the job?
It depends on the extent
of damage and the length of time it takes the insurance company to respond.
As a general rule the drying process can take from 3 to 7 days. During that
time we will be writing the reconstruction bid. A few more days for the adjuster
to review our bid. Then reconstruction starts. So, from start to finish it
can take from 5 days for a simple job to 4 weeks if it is a large job with
many different trades involved.
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Can I remodel or upgrade the rooms you are working on?
Of course. Your insurance
company will usually pay a reasonable price to put your home back to preloss
condition but you can choose to do additional remodeling in addition to that.
We do it all the time and it is a perfect time to do this if you are interested.
Just let us know what you want and we will work with you to make it happen.
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