How much are you paying for ServiceMaster or ServPro this time?

Anonymous
We had to do massive clean up (plus pay a regular plumber) last night for our basement flooding.
Wondering how much it would cost if we had called a company to do it all for us. And is this covered by a home insurance claim?
Anonymous
You should call a company. You need industrial fans and dehumidifiers to prevent mold growth. It is pricey, but necessary. Assuming your water is from outside and not a sump backup, it is not covered. If a sump backup, it will likely be covered if you bought that extra coverage.
Anonymous
be careful on making claims, insurance will drop you like a hot potatoe for water claims. Make sure it is worth it
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:You should call a company. You need industrial fans and dehumidifiers to prevent mold growth. It is pricey, but necessary. Assuming your water is from outside and not a sump backup, it is not covered. If a sump backup, it will likely be covered if you bought that extra coverage.


How much?
Anonymous
We had flooding in one room of basement, didn't go much above baseboards (finished basement). Cost for servicepro (or equivalent, can't remember who I used) $3000. They removed wet carpeting and set up drying equipment, no water removal necessary. It was paid for by federal flood insurance (we are not in a flood zone but carry flood insurance).
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:We had flooding in one room of basement, didn't go much above baseboards (finished basement). Cost for servicepro (or equivalent, can't remember who I used) $3000. They removed wet carpeting and set up drying equipment, no water removal necessary. It was paid for by federal flood insurance (we are not in a flood zone but carry flood insurance).


you paid 3 grand for a fan? wow i have to get into that business

that is awful they pcharge that much
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:We had flooding in one room of basement, didn't go much above baseboards (finished basement). Cost for servicepro (or equivalent, can't remember who I used) $3000. They removed wet carpeting and set up drying equipment, no water removal necessary. It was paid for by federal flood insurance (we are not in a flood zone but carry flood insurance).


you paid 3 grand for a fan? wow i have to get into that business

that is awful they pcharge that much


No the federal government paid, but was much more than a fan.
Anonymous
Insurance almost never covers water.

It is absolutely worth it to call in professionals. We found mold around the perimeter of our basement (we didn't know we had a water problem) behind the drywall and under the carpet about six months after we moved in.

In addition to the carpet, we had to remove a ton of drywall (about four feet high around the entire perimeter of our finished basement, including guest room and bathroom), have the mold remediated (expensive), and then have new drywall hung and get the whole thing painted.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
Anonymous
We've actually been through this twice and filed a claim both times--once 8 years ago and once about a year ago. The first was a parts failure in an upstairs toilet that left water running throughout our house (through the vents) all day while we were at work. Our ceilings were on the floor when we got home. The second was a parts failure in our washing machine in the basement, which flooded our finished basement.

I don't remember how much ServiceMaster cost exactly because our insurance paid them directly. I think it was around $1500 for the second incident, and more for the first, which was 3 levels of water mitigation. They bring in the massive fans and dehumidifiers. They rip up carpeting and padding--and then come back to inspect it 24 and 48 hours later to determine whether it's totaled (looking for mold growth). They test for moisture in drywall with equipment and cut out pieces of drywall if they find moisture, and then direct fans into the space. They follow up on the conditions to determine how long the fans should stay. They also come to your house any time of day or night (though its sounds like you're past that point). On the first occasion, they arrived at 9:30pm and were there until 5am. They were very responsible and professional both times.

Insurance covered everything for both incidents. New flooring, contractors for drywall repair and painting, reimbursed for ruined furniture, etc. They obviously don't cover whatever caused the problem in the first place, i.e, the parts failure. Our rates did not noticeably rise. Our insurance is through USAA.
Anonymous
Homeowners definitely covers it. We had about a $3000 job after Hurricane Irene. Servicemaster was awesome; very quick and efficient. We were able to pump out the water and rip up the carpet ourselves in the first couple of hours, which helped keep the water level below the baseboards and minimize the amount of drywall that had to be replaced.

However, you need to be careful about too many insurance claims - more than one claim in three years can cause them to drop you.
Anonymous
We had 2 claims with USAA and they dropped us. One house struck by lightening, second water heater burst.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:We had 2 claims with USAA and they dropped us. One house struck by lightening, second water heater burst.


Yeh screw them. They dropped my parents when my brother got in an accident that cost more than 20k.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:Homeowners definitely covers it. We had about a $3000 job after Hurricane Irene. Servicemaster was awesome; very quick and efficient. We were able to pump out the water and rip up the carpet ourselves in the first couple of hours, which helped keep the water level below the baseboards and minimize the amount of drywall that had to be replaced.

However, you need to be careful about too many insurance claims - more than one claim in three years can cause them to drop you.


Homeowners definitely doesn't cover flood damage unless you have a sump pump clause, and your sump pump failed. A burst pipe will be covered by homeowner's not a storm related flood. Flood insurance, however, will cover it.
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:We've actually been through this twice and filed a claim both times--once 8 years ago and once about a year ago. The first was a parts failure in an upstairs toilet that left water running throughout our house (through the vents) all day while we were at work. Our ceilings were on the floor when we got home. The second was a parts failure in our washing machine in the basement, which flooded our finished basement.

I don't remember how much ServiceMaster cost exactly because our insurance paid them directly. I think it was around $1500 for the second incident, and more for the first, which was 3 levels of water mitigation. They bring in the massive fans and dehumidifiers. They rip up carpeting and padding--and then come back to inspect it 24 and 48 hours later to determine whether it's totaled (looking for mold growth). They test for moisture in drywall with equipment and cut out pieces of drywall if they find moisture, and then direct fans into the space. They follow up on the conditions to determine how long the fans should stay. They also come to your house any time of day or night (though its sounds like you're past that point). On the first occasion, they arrived at 9:30pm and were there until 5am. They were very responsible and professional both times.

Insurance covered everything for both incidents. New flooring, contractors for drywall repair and painting, reimbursed for ruined furniture, etc. They obviously don't cover whatever caused the problem in the first place, i.e, the parts failure. Our rates did not noticeably rise. Our insurance is through USAA.


Did you have flood/extra water coverage with USAA?
Anonymous
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Homeowners definitely covers it. We had about a $3000 job after Hurricane Irene. Servicemaster was awesome; very quick and efficient. We were able to pump out the water and rip up the carpet ourselves in the first couple of hours, which helped keep the water level below the baseboards and minimize the amount of drywall that had to be replaced.

However, you need to be careful about too many insurance claims - more than one claim in three years can cause them to drop you.


Homeowners definitely doesn't cover flood damage unless you have a sump pump clause, and your sump pump failed. A burst pipe will be covered by homeowner's not a storm related flood. Flood insurance, however, will cover it.

+1 except flood insurance is for floodplains, not any house that has water flood into it.
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