If you notice any swelling, discoloration, or musty odors that you believe is coming from a leak, then you need to identify and stop the leak before contacting CET to come out and inspect for damages. Depending on the type of loss and cost of damages, it will either be an insurance claim or out of pocket expense. We can assist by giving recommendations, put together a preliminary estimate, and give referrals. Give us a call to see how we can help you protect your property!

There are several steps one can take to determine if the property damage is covered or not. First, contact your insurance to understand the coverage limits in your home policy. Next is identifying if the damage is sudden and accidental, or long term damage from a lack of preventative maintenance or negligence. If the damage is sudden and accidental, it has a strong likely hood of being approved so now you need to know whether the mitigation and repair prices exceed your policy deductible. By this point if coverage is still unclear, then contact your insurance to get their professional opinion on coverage before filing a claim.

Outside of testing structures for mold and asbestos, we inspect properties with suspected water damage to give recommendations, write Xactimate estimates, and assist homeowner’s with projects too small for insurance or contractors. Although we don’t offer full water mitigation services, we do offer:

Rentals for mitigation equipment by the day, job site prep, general demolition services, mold remediation, and chlorine di-oxide odor treatments in vacant properties.

If we don’t do it, we likely know somebody that does!

If you need emergency home services due to water, fire, or storm damage and/or decide to file an insurance claim, contact a restoration company that you feel you can trust to have them handle the claim documentation and completing the approved scope of work. If you are unsure whether you have water damage or if total costs will exceed your deductible, then CET can help put you on the right path.

Have a job too small for insurance and don’t want to pay big contractor prices? CET can assist with protecting your home, no matter how small. With years of insurance restoration experience and certifications in water damage restoration and mold remediation, we strive to be a resource that helps homeowner’s throughout the Carolinas!

Many modern materials are porous and allow water to absorb into and get trapped, which creates the ideal conditions for mold spores to “activate” and start growing by eating nearby organic material in as early as 24-72 hours. Our meters allows us to find trapped moisture that otherwise wouldn’t be noticeable, which in turn allows homeowners to take measures to protect their home. Just because it looks dry, doesn’t mean it is dry.

If you suspect you have water damage outside of a flood or busted water line, then call a plumber to fix the leak (this expense is not covered by insurance typically). Once the leak is fixed, contact a company like CET to find and document any water damage to see if it is sudden and accidental, as well as over your policy’s deductible amount. If the insurance thinks it is a coverable claim, then find a restoration company you trust to start the mitigation process and get the structure dry. The deductible amount for you policy is subtracted from the mitigation or repair invoice amount, and is typically the only expense the homeowner has during the process outside of rot and change orders.

Once the mitigation is complete, usually the mitigation company will send all their documentation and Xactimate estimates to the insurance company for the mitigation and repairs. Once the adjuster receives the required documentation and approves the estimates, checks for both estimates will be issued and the mitigation company will be paid the full invoice amount for the mitigation. The homeowner then signs a contract with either the same company that did the mitigation or a new company to do the repairs per the approved estimate amount. Rather than “shop estimates,” find a reliable contractor and give them the full approved amount in appropriate increments per the repair timeline. Companies will typically have this broken down in the repair contract, and the insurance company (or mortgage company if applicable) may have conditions on how the funds are distributed.