Water Damage Contractors in CA, What You need to Know to Choose Wisely

Choosing a water damage contractor for your California water damage emergency may seem like a daunting task, but it doesn’t have to be that way.

We are located in California and offer quick incident response in and around the following cities: Sacramento, San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose, Modesto, Stockton, Santa Rosa, Yuba City

When water damage strikes choosing a reliable, competent water damage contractor for your CA commercial or residential property is job one. Buyer beware! In California, as with many states there are not statewide certifications for water damage contractors in general, but that doesn’t mean your contractor shouldn’t be certified. There are national organizations that provide training and certifications for the myriad of specialties that exist within the field of water damage repair, mitigation, remediation and restoration. The IICRC provides thorough training to it’s paid members in good standing. Although there are some certifications required by the state such as for asbestos removal, HAZMAT, etc, most of the field of water damage repair is unregulated. Don’t get caught hiring the wrong person or company, make sure they hold the proper certifications for water damage repair from the IICRC.

We have put together a small list of things you can ask or confirm before hiring any water damage contractor in CA. I bet you can guess; we meet them all! There are always alternatives for your water damage repair project in CA, we are looking forward to earning your business!

What to look for in your water damage contractor in California

• Fully Insured
• IICRC Certified
• HAZWOPPER 40 Certified
• Craftsmanship Quality Guarantee
• Full service damage repair, restoration and reconstruction company
• Company wide train and retrain program
• Employees pass complete background checks
• Project management and quality control systems and processes in place
• Dedicated account and project managers for each project
• True 24 emergency response, not just emergency “call” response
• Immediate Dispatch for 24 hour emergencies
• 60-90 minute onsite to most of service area
• Personalized service from initial consultation to project completion follow up and reporting
• Extensive insurance knowledge
• Direct insurance billing (we work for you and not the insurance companies during mitigation, national franchises have loyalties to large insurers that may be biased based on the funneling of work)
• Insurance deductible assistance
• Have Managed state and federal contracts
• Family owned and operated (decisions are taken locally and not mandated at some national level with disregard for onsite needs for both property and people, with us you’re not just a number)
• Big company resources with local decision making and compassion to assist during these stressful times
• Offer full suite of services from cleanup, to demo, to reconstruction, pack out, contents manipulation and inventory, storage, and insurance billing assistance
• Serving Northern California for almost 30 years

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Water Damage Contractors in CA Serving the following Industries & Areas

 

There are a few other things you can do to ensure the process with you’re water damage contractor for your CA based emergency will go smoothly. Any California water damage contractor should provide the following as part of your engagement.

A legal binding contract for the water damage repair project is critical for both the contractor and you as the customer.

Many people think the contract provides security for the water damage contractor, but the truth is, it protects both the contractor and the customer, just make sure you read the contract carefully. Also make sure the contract is stated as a water damage repair contract, and doesn’t mention other services you don’t need, in addition make sure it is governed by the laws of the State of CA.

What You Shouldn’t Do When Choosing a Water Damage Contractor Near You in CA

Sometimes it’s obvious what you should do in the process of choosing a water damage contractor in California, but it’s not so obvious what you shouldn’t be doing! We have put a small list of things together that you should avoid doing when choosing a water damage contractor for your water damage repair project.

1. Pay large exorbitant amounts of money upfront before the work get’s started. Of course it’s reasonable to expect a down payment, but it shouldn’t be large. When it comes to emergency events that are covered by insurance policy claims, it’s ok to assign the payment of all agreed work billing to your restoration company, but having them ask for a down payment in addition to is not standard. The assignment of the payable for the work should suffice. Additionally of you are undertaking elective work, make sure the deposit is enough to be reasonable for both parties, and is governed by the above-mentioned written contract or agreement.
2. Don’t assume that all water damage contractors are equal, in fact assume the complete opposite. There are many differences between contractors and can range from number of employees, true response times, pricing, quality of services (this is a huge one), and licensing. Make sure you choose a company that has a staff large enough to accommodate your emergency repair in short order, has all of the necessary certifications and licenses needed to undertake the work. In this area, ensuring that your provider has the proper training and certifications to ensure the work is done properly is worth every penny you spend. Getting a water damage repair job wrong can at a bare minimum cost you a lot of money, and at the very worst, produce harmful side effects from improperly mitigated water damage leaving behind harmful remnants that can breed mold and cause harmful heath conditions that may or may not be able to be addressed. The last thing you need is a chronic health issue standing in the way of a productive, healthy life.
3. Never begin any work without a written contract outlining the restoration companies responsibilities as well as what your responsibilities are during the process.
4. Never jump to a quick decision. This one is difficult as you are often faced with an emergency that needs to be handled immediately. Additionally your insurance policy dictates you mist handle things as soon as possible if you want them to reimburse you for the costs of doing work. It’s a fine line. Just keep those “spidey” senses active, and if you are feeling pushed, or rushed into a decision take a step back and rethink the situation. Reliable contractors won’t push you, they will inform, educate, and present you with options, contracts and transparent pricing. They will not be pushy, although they may want to help by getting started as soon as possible to mitigate any long term damage due to delays, they will still give you enough time to feel comfortable with them as your contractor.
5. Weighting overall price over overall value. This is often overlooked, but where most people go wrong. There is a reason the saying “If it’s too cheap it’s too good to be true” is a cliche, because it’s true. Sure sometimes the best value, is in fact the contractor with the lowest price, but in most cases that’s not true. As with most things, you do get what you pay for. Look for the best value in your decision to choose one water damage contractor over another. You need to look at price as one consideration, but looking at quality of work, reliability, time to completion, references, general overall feeling about the people and the company, their training and retraining programs and commitments, length of time in business, etc all come into consideration. Look to value, not price, and remember an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

If you are looking for a water damage contractor in CA and want to know among water damage contractors serving California, why Zebra Restoration is one of your best options, give us a call today and we would be glad to talk to you and explain. We are looking forward to earning your business! Call 916-345-1386