What Happens Next? An information guide to restoring your property following: n Fire. n Flood. n Escape of Water. n Accidental Damage

Transcription

1 What Happens Next? An information guide to restoring your property following: n Fire n Flood n Escape of Water n Accidental Damage

2 Contents 2 About Rainbow International 3 Emergency Procedures 4 Your Questions Answered 5 Fire & Smoke Damage 6 & 7 Flood & Water Damage 8 Carpet Replacement 9 Be Prepared 10 Important Information 11 Your Notes About Rainbow International Rainbow International is a fire, flood and accidental damage restoration company with branches throughout the UK. Insurance companies, or their loss adjusters appoint Rainbow International to help in the restoration of buildings and/or contents. It is very likely that you will have many questions about the work that we are carrying out in your property. This booklet answers the most frequently asked questions about the part of the claims process in which we are involved. You can rest assured that we will work with you, your insurance company and/or loss adjuster to bring your claim to a prompt conclusion and help you get your life and property back to normal as quickly and safely as possible. You can rely on us to carry out the work professionally and sympathetically at all times. We would be grateful for your assistance in providing as much information as possible about the incident and for an opportunity to inspect the affected areas to make an assessment. For your benefit, we regularly check the service standards of our operatives. You may therefore, be asked by one of our quality auditors for permission to visit you and if that occurs, we would appreciate your co-operation. Thank you for allowing us to work in your property.

3 Emergency Procedures EMERGENCY PROCEDURES AFTER FIRE & SMOKE DAMAGE 1 Assessing the damaged areas 2 Carrying out safety checks, if required, to affected electricity/gas supplies 3 Ventilating the property to remove stale odours 4 Removing materials and/or contents items beyond restoration (subject to policy) 5 Removing materials and/or contents items for restoration (subject to policy) 6 Carrying out odour elimination procedures (there are several different processes, which can do this) 7 Cleaning down walls, ceilings and woodwork of smoke/soot deposits 8 Cleaning contents and fixtures to remove soot/smoke and odour EMERGENCY PROCEDURES AFTER FLOOD & WATER DAMAGE 1 Assessing the damaged areas 2 Removing standing water by extraction with pumps 3 Removing materials and/or contents items beyond restoration (subject to policy) 4 Removing materials and/or contents items for restoration (subject to policy) 5 Carrying out moisture content readings/ surveys of the structure of the building and floor coverings 6 Cleaning and applying solutions to inhibit mould and bacteria growth 7 Electrical check if required (subject to policy) 8 Installing drying equipment suitable to the drying requirements of the building In accordance with the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations, emergency restoration work may be undertaken to prevent further damage. To ensure the health and safety of you, your family, the restoration technicians and any other sub-contractors, who may require access to your property. The tables opposite show the emergency work which may be involved. After emergency procedures have been carried out, a detailed assessment of the damage to buildings and contents will be undertaken. This may then require processes which can only be carried out in an empty property. In dealing with the incident, and depending on how severe the damage is, some or all of the procedures listed opposite may be followed. However your policy cover may limit the nature and extent of work that we can complete. For example, if your policy is contents only we will not be in a position to remove damaged buildings materials (e.g.kitchen units), and will be unable to clean walls and ceilings. IMPORTANT NOTE: Please do not dispose of any items, which are part of your claim or any samples left by Rainbow International until your insurance company has authorised this. These items must be kept for inspection and valuation. page 3 24hr National Helpline:

4 Your Questions Answered page 4 What happens after you ve done your assessment? Once the assessment has been completed, a report will be submitted to your insurance company or loss adjuster for their approval. As soon as they have authorised this, we will contact you to arrange to start or complete the necessary work. However, on many occasions (subject to the incident, circumstances and policy cover), we are granted authority to continue restoration and start the required processes prior to report approval. When will you send the report? We submit our reports to insurance companies/ loss adjusters within the timescales requested by them. This is usually within 48 hours. How long will it take for the report to be approved by the insurance company / loss adjuster? This can vary, depending on the nature and scale of work required and other factors, such as claims surges, for example during widespread flooding. We will work closely with your insurance company/loss adjuster to deal with your claim as quickly as possible and keep you informed on the progress during this process. But what happens if work needs to be done straight away? Subject to policy cover, we may undertake emergency restoration work to prevent further damage and to ensure the health and safety of you, your family, the restoration technicians and any other sub-contractors, who may need access to your property. What happens if we re not covered in our policy for some of the work, emergency or otherwise? You will be asked to sign a mandate authorising Rainbow International to carry out restoration. In doing this you are accepting responsibility for the resultant costs. Our buildings and contents policies are with two different insurance companies, does this mean we ll get two different restoration companies? If Rainbow International is appointed by one insurance company, then to maintain continuity and minimise disruption for yourself and your family, you are quite at liberty to request to the other insurance company that you require Rainbow International to be the sole restoration company on site and that we are already on site in a restoration capacity. However, we would not be able to commence work until we had received a formal instruction to do so from the insurance company. Who do we speak to if we have further queries or questions relating to the restoration of our property? If you have any questions, concerns or queries during the restoration work, please do not hesitate to speak to the technician personally on site, or to call your local Rainbow International branch, details of which are printed on the back of this booklet.

5 Fire & Smoke Damage Contents After the emergency work has been completed and subject to your policy cover, our technician will assess contents to determine whether successful restoration is possible. Other specialists such as furniture restorers, electrical engineers and upholsterers may be needed to inspect damaged items. Our technician or the loss adjuster will discuss this with you. Affected items can range from carpets and rugs to furniture and light fittings and all manner of items in between. This means that a wide range of restoration techniques has been developed. It may be necessary to remove items for cleaning off-site, depending on the extent of the damage. We will discuss all of this with you. Once an assessment of the items to be cleaned and/ or restored is complete, an estimate detailing items that can be restored economically will be provided to your insurance company or loss adjuster for their approval for us to go ahead. Items that cannot be restored economically will be identified and, with your approval, listed and removed. Your insurance company or loss adjuster will need a list of these items to arrange replacement or settlement. When the restoration has been completed, you will be asked by the technician to confirm your satisfaction by signing a form. This will enable us to submit the final report to your insurance company for prompt settlement. Buildings The intensity of the fire will affect how much restoration work is possible. Additionally, there may also be some secondary water damage, due to water being introduced by the Fire Service to put the fire out. The effects of airborne smoke deposits may be visible throughout the property on surfaces, walls and ceilings. These carbon deposits have to be removed or neutralised before redecoration can be started. On most structural surfaces, smoke residue will be removed using dry procedures, often followed by wet cleaning. Surface cleaning will remove the majority of smoke deposits. However, if the particles have been driven into the building s structure, a sealant may be applied, after cleaning. This prevents smoke odour and staining coming back. If building materials are burnt, then restoration is not possible. This means that building work and redecoration may be required, which will normally be considered separately by your insurance company or loss adjuster. Rainbow International aims to leave the structure in a suitable condition for any other sub-contractors to complete their work. page 5 24hr National Helpline:

6 Flood & Water Damage page 6 Buildings A drying programme will be discussed with you. The technician will arrange to monitor regularly the reduction of moisture in the building structure and air. It is very difficult to determine the exact length of time it will take to dry the property. It depends on many factors, such as: The length of time the building has been exposed to water The amount of moisture that has been absorbed How deeply the walls and floors have been penetrated The types of materials used in construction Regular measuring and monitoring will provide ongoing progress records. These records will monitor the relative humidity and temperature of the building, so as to establish a balanced drying environment. Our technician will agree appointments with you while at the property or, if that is not possible, we will telephone you to make the next appointment. It is vital that the drying equipment installed, such as dehumidifiers, be used as directed by the technician, as the longer the equipment is allowed to operate, the shorter the drying time will be. If the drying process is not completed thoroughly, serious problems may arise at a later date. Buildings If damage has been caused to decorations and fixtures, these will most likely be dealt with separately by your insurance company or loss adjuster. They may have appointed decorators or building contractors already to provide estimates. Rainbow International s priority is to leave the structure in a safe and suitable condition for other subcontractors to complete their work. When the restoration work has been completed, you will be asked by the technician to confirm your satisfaction by signing a form. This will enable us to submit a final report to your insurance company for prompt settlement. Contents After the emergency work has been completed, our technician will make an assessment of contents to determine whether successful restoration is possible. Other specialists such as furniture restorers, electrical engineers and upholsterers may be needed to inspect damaged items. Our technician or your loss adjuster will discuss this with you. Once this assessment has been completed, an estimate detailing items that can be restored economically will be provided to your insurance company or loss adjuster for their approval. Items that are beyond economical restoration will be identified and, with your approval, listed and removed. Your insurance company or loss adjuster will need a list of these items to arrange for replacement or settlement.

7 Flood & Water Damage What does a dehumidifier do? It controls the humidity levels of the atmosphere in the affected areas. Basically, this means it removes water from the air in the property to return the property to its pre-damaged state. Why do dehumidifiers need to run all the time? It is important that the equipment is left running continuously, to ensure that your property dries as quickly as possible. How will you know when my property is completely dry? Our technicians will take regular readings to find out the moisture levels in your property, and they will be pleased to discuss them with you. When the drying process is complete, we issue a Certificate of Dryness to your insurance company to prove that we have returned your property to its pre-damaged state. What if my dehumidifier stops working? Please contact your local Rainbow International branch immediately. The contact number is printed on the back cover of this booklet. Will the dehumidifier affect someone with breathing difficulties, e.g. asthma? Sometimes, if the equipment is used in confined spaces, the reduced moisture content may aggravate some respiratory problems. Damp conditions may also have an effect on people or pets with such a condition. Is the equipment safe? All the equipment we use is tested regularly. However, as with all electrical equipment, please ensure your children and pets are kept away. Should I open the windows and doors? If dehumidifiers have been installed, windows and doors should be kept shut to prevent moist air from entering the affected area. If no dehumidifiers are installed, then the technician will advise you. The walls look and feel dry, so why do you still need the dehumidifiers? The surface of the walls and floors will look and feel dry, but moisture becomes trapped inside the walls, so it is important to complete the drying process. If this is not done, after a short time the moisture inside the walls will move back to the surface and signs of water damage will reappear, such as patches on newly painted walls and possible mould growth. In worst cases, the building structure can be affected. Is it safe for me to stay in my home if it has been flooded by contaminated water? This should be discussed and agreed between your claims adviser or loss adjuster and our technician. In all cases, the affected areas will be cleaned and sanitised by our technicians in case there are any harmful bacteria present in the flood water. page 7 24hr National Helpline:

8 Contents Replacement page 8 IMPORTANT NOTE: Please do not dispose of any items, which are part of your claim or any samples left by Rainbow International until your insurance company has authorised this. These items must be kept for inspection and valuation. If we are unable to restore your carpets, upholstery, cabinets or electrical items, we will report this to your insurance company/loss adjuster. Subject to your insurance company s or loss adjuster s response, we may then pass your details to their approved replacement supplier, who will contact you to arrange the selection and replacement of the damaged items.

9 Be Prepared In times of disaster, quite understandably it is easy to forget some basic things that you need. If the situation you are in means that you have to leave your home for a period, we suggest that you gather together the following items: VALUABLE ITEMS Jewellery Items of financial value items of sentimental value Don t forget to check your safe places IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS Passport Cheque book Credit cards Bank account details Utility bills Insurance documents Cash LAUNDRY At least 2 days worth of clothing page 9 24hr National Helpline:

10 Important Information page 10 CONTENTS POLICY Insurance company BUILDINGS POLICY Insurance company Policy number Policy number Contact name Contact name Telephone number Telephone number Loss adjuster Loss adjuster Contact name Contact name Telephone number Telephone number CARPET REPLACEMENT Company RAINBOW INTERNATIONAL Contact name Contact name Telephone number Telephone number Mobile number

11 Your Notes page 11 We Welcome Your Feedback. Rainbow International s goal is to provide complete customer satisfaction. If you have any comments to make regarding the service you have received from your local branch, please call our Quality & Audit Department on hr National Helpline:

12 Rainbow International The UK s leading provider of Fire, Flood, Accidental Damage Restoration and Commercial Cleaning Services to: n Insurance industry Insurance companies, loss adjusters, insurance brokers on domestic and commercial policyholders claims. n Education Schools, LEA s, colleges and universities. n Health Hospitals, medical and walk in centres, dental practices, nursing homes and veterinary centres. n Local Authorities & Public Utilities County, city and parish councils, utility companies. n Leisure & retail Pubs, clubs, restaurants, hotels, conference facilities, theatres, cinemas, retail chains and health clubs. n Construction Builders cleans. n Commercial institutions Banks, building societies, offices and contract cleaning. n Property management Housing Associations, letting, managing agents and general facilities management. Your Local Branch Rainbow International, Spectrum House, Lower Oakham Way Oakham Business Park, Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, NG18 5BY Tel: Fax: enquiries@rainbow-int.co.uk Web: A FRANCHISE OWNED & OPERATED UNDER LICENCE FIND US IN YOUR LOCAL YELLOW PAGES ALTERNATIVELY CONTACT THE NATIONAL HELPLINE: design by xposure: info@x-vc.co.uk 24hr National Helpline: