Is it worth filing a claim?

2/12/2019 (Permalink)

Sometimes initial water damages can create secondary losses also!

The average cost for a homeowner to repair and/or restore water damage that has happened to their home is between $2,000 and $5,000.  There are several factors that weigh in on this cost, mostly the extent of damage and the cause or type of damage that has occurred.  Obviously, the faster the water is extracted and the area dried, the less damage and less cost incurred.  Preventative maintenance and general upkeep on a home reduces the chances of a water damage loss and is much less expensive. 

Other factors that affect the cost are the category and classifications of the water damage.  There are 3 categories:

• Category 1- Clean Water – often comes from drinking sources, such as a leaky faucet, leaky toilet tank, rain and sprinklers, burst pipes or water heaters.
• Category 2- Grey Water – can cause some health threats as it can contain harmful contaminants that may cause a minor illness. Grey water can quickly become a serious threat due to the potential for growth of mold and bacteria.  Sources include overflowing dishwashers and washing machines or toilets containing urine or cleaning agents.
• Category 3- Black Water – Can cause serious health threats or possibly even death. Sources are sewage backups, flooding, or storm surges.

There are also 4 different classes the water loss will be assigned.  This classification is dependent upon how intense the cleanup is.  These classes are:

• Class 1- The easiest and usually the most inexpensive to clean and repair, indicates only a section of a room is affected with very little wet carpeting. Often repairable by the homeowner themselves.
• Class 2- This is when an entire room has been affected, including the walls up to 12 inches. Moisture remains in the structure and will need cleanup as well as some repairs.
• Class 3- This class has saturated ceilings, walls, floors, and even the subfloor and insulation. Often times the moisture has come from above, like a burst pipe.
• Class 4- This damage is often a result of a river flooding or storm surges. It has saturated materials like stone, brick and hardwood.  This is the most severe classification.

So as you can see the cost increases with the amount of damage incurred, the length of time since damage did occur and what caused the damage.  The average cost being a minimum of nearly $2,000.00 for a small water loss claim, and a maximum cost being unknown depending on significance of the damage. 

As a homeowner, you ask if your insurance company will cover the loss. Most insurance companies require you to purchase separate flood coverages.  Some other extra coverages that can be purchased are: additional replacement cost, debris removal, tree removal, trees, shrubs and other plants, fire department service charges, credit card-fund transfer card forgery- and counterfeit money, ordinance and law coverage, personal property endorsements, and water backup and sump pump overflow.

As a rule, most policies cover damage that is deemed to be sudden and internal.  This typically means damage from a burst pipe, faulty or frozen plumbing, accidental overflow of an appliance or fixture, water damage caused from extinguishing a fire, and seepage into the house from a leaking roof (however the roof itself is not likely to be included in the coverage), damage from rain or a snow storm, and from mold that results from damage from one of the above perils.  Water damage caused from vandalism is likely to be covered.

On the other side of this rule, even though rain damage is covered, a general rule is if it hits the ground first before causing damage to your home, it will not be covered.  This not only considers flooding, but also just a mere rise in the water table caused from rain.  Separate flood coverage is recommended.  Another general rule is that damage from water that enters the home through plumbing is not covered.  Aside from the considerations of additional coverages, if the insurance company deems the damage to be ultimately caused by negligence, then they will not cover it.  Preventative maintenance is crucial to not only preventing damage but also to ensuring it is covered in the event damage occurs. 

 In the event that you do suffer a water damage loss at your residence, don’t hesitate to call SERVPRO of North Calhoun County (269) 963-3033 for an immediate response to any size disaster at any hour of any day, even holidays.  We will make it “Like it never even happened.”