FAQs
- What should the customer know about your pricing (e.g., discounts, fees)?
Quote (simplified and free) vs actual insurance estimate: Insurance estimates need to be broken in to two segments in order to maximize the payout from insurer according to your policy. The first is mitigation. The structure of this estimate can determine up to 80% of the second estimate - rebuild, putback, or restoration. Each estimate consists of a diagram with calculates the preset unit costs. A 5-50 page report inside a program called Xactimate is generated. Xactimate is the industry standard insurance billing program. I charge for these because of the level of detail and time. These estimates will work in your favor for legitimately maximizing your claim according to your policy. My charge is $750 (non-fire/smoke) when no work is done. This is your advocate.
- What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
IICRC.org has continuing education schools. We must keep our CEs updated.
- How did you get started doing this type of work?
It started in a company's carpet cleaning division and quickly moved to water damage restoration in Atlanta because of my availability of 24/7. Shortly after that, it made sense to serve customers where I can offer a quicker response time. This happened at the end of 2003.