What To Do After the Fire Is Out
After fire damage, safety comes first. Do not re-enter the property until firefighters, inspectors, or local officials say it is safe. Fire can weaken structures, damage electrical systems, create air quality concerns, and leave behind hazards that are not always obvious from the outside.
Once you are allowed to safely access the property, begin documenting the damage before anything is moved, cleaned, removed, or repaired. 
Take photos and videos of:
- Burned areas
- Smoke damage
- Soot-covered surfaces
- Damaged ceilings
- Walls
- Flooring
- Furniture
- Appliances
- Equipment/ Tools
- Personal Belongings/ Jewelry
- Water Damage Caused by Firefighting Efforts
Ashford DiMartino & Jones can help you understand what to keep, what to ask, what to avoid signing too quickly, and how to make sure the insurance company does not limit the scope of the fire damage restoration you may need.
This documentation matters because fire damage is not always limited to the area where the flames were visible. Smoke can travel through rooms, vents, walls, ceilings, and HVAC systems. Soot can settle from the fire & water used to extinguish the fire can cause additional damage to your home.
Before the fire clean up process gets too far ahead, secure guidance for the insurance side of the recovery. This does not mean delaying emergency fire clean up services, it means making sure the damage is properly documented and the insurance claim is protected when the physical cleanup begins. Ashford DiMartino & Jones can help you understand what to keep, what to ask, what to avoid signing too quickly, and how to make sure the insurance company does not limit the scope of the fire damage restoration you may need.
Who Calls the Fire Restoration Company?
Many property owners are unsure who should call the fire restoration company after a fire. Sometimes the homeowner or business owner calls directly because the property needs board-up, smoke damage clean up, water removal, or emergency fire restoration cleaning. Other times, the insurance company may recommend a preferred vendor, or a contractor may suggest bringing in a restoration team. There is nothing wrong with getting emergency restoration help when the property needs it. SERVPRO and other restoration companies can play an important role in fire damage clean up, smoke damage cleaning, smoke remediation, odor treatment, water extraction, structural drying, debris removal, and repairs.
The important thing is to understand that the restoration company, the insurance company, and the property owner each have different roles. The restoration company addresses physical damage and the insurance company evaluates what it believes should be paid under the policy. Ashford & DiMartino helps property owners protect the insurance recovery connected to the fire restoration work.
Before assuming the insurance company’s preferred vendor, first estimate, or first inspection captures the full damage, it could help to have us review what is happening and make sure your fire damage claim is not being limited too early.
Working With Your Insurance Company After a Fire
After fire damage, your insurance company may assign an adjuster to do the following:
- Request Documentation (Photos You’ve Taken)
- Inspect the property
- Review restoration estimates
After this then they’ll decide what it believes is covered. This process may feel official, but the insurance company’s first estimate is not always the full picture.
Problems can arise when the adjuster misses smoke or soot damage, undervalues damaged contents, questions whether certain repairs are necessary, or approves fire clean up while refusing to pay for the full restoration. A fire damage insurance claim may also involve disputes over temporary housing, business interruption, code upgrades, odor removal, contents cleaning, or water damage from firefighting efforts.This does not work in your favor.
Working with your insurance company does not mean accepting everything at face value. You have the right to ask questions, review the estimate, compare it against fire restoration documentation, and get guidance before signing paperwork or settling the claim.
Ashford DiMartino & Jones helps property owners communicate with the insurance company, review claim documents, and identify when the insurance recovery may not match the actual fire, smoke, soot, water, and structural damage.
Fire Damage Restoration Is More Than Cleaning
Fire damage restoration is often the first thing people search for after a fire because the visible damage feels urgent. Burned materials may need to be removed, smoke odors may spread, soot may cover walls and belongings, and water from firefighting efforts may create additional problems. But fire restoration is not only about cleaning what burned. That’s why identifying hidden damage through documentation ensures the insurance company considers everything needed to return the property to its pre-loss condition.
If this damage is not properly documented this leaves a grey area for insurance companies may later argue that certain work is unnecessary, unrelated, cosmetic, or outside the covered loss. That can leave you the property owner paying for cleanup, odor treatment, contents cleaning, or repairs that should have been part of the recovery which is unacceptable.
Ashford & DiMartino can assist you to protect the insurance side of fire damage restoration while fire restoration companies and contractors focus on the physical work.
Common Problems with Fire Damage Insurance Claims
A fire damage insurance claim does not always go wrong immediately. Sometimes the issues appear slowly as the cleanup and estimating process unfolds.
The insurance company may approve basic fire clean up but dispute smoke remediation. It may pay for visible burn damage but undervalue soot damage in other rooms. They may question whether a smoke removal service is necessary. They may approve water extraction but deny related repairs caused by firefighting efforts. They might even undervalue furniture, clothing, inventory, equipment, electronics, flooring, drywall, cabinetry, or structural repairs.
Home insurance fire coverage may also raise questions about temporary housing, replacement cost, code upgrades, personal property, additional living expenses, and whether certain parts of the damage are fully covered. For business owners, the claim may involve damaged inventory, interrupted operations, lost income, equipment replacement, tenant concerns, and pressure to reopen quickly.
These issues matter because a low estimate can shape the entire recovery. If the insurance company limits the scope early, the fire damage restoration process may become slower, harder, and more expensive for the property owner.
Why Smoke, Soot, and Odor Damage Should Not Be Overlooked
After a fire, the visible burn area may get the most attention, but smoke and soot can create serious problems throughout the property. Smoke travels through hallways, vents, wall cavities, ceiling spaces, and HVAC systems. Soot can settle on surfaces and contents far from the fire itself.
Smoke damage cleaning and smoke damage clean up may involve more than wiping down visible residue. Depending on the property, proper restoration may require cleaning walls, ceilings, floors, furniture, clothing, electronics, ductwork, and other contents. In some cases, smoke remediation and odor removal may be necessary before the property is safe, usable, or comfortable again.
Insurance companies may try to treat smoke damage as minor or cosmetic. They may also underestimate the cost of fire restoration cleaning, contents cleaning, or professional odor treatment. If the estimate does not include the full scope of smoke, soot, and odor damage, the property owner may be left with lingering problems after the visible repairs are finished.
Long story short, Document, Document, Document!
Ashford & DiMartino can help review whether the insurance company’s estimate accounts for the damage beyond the burn area.
Why Documentation Matters Before Fire Clean Up Begins
Documentation is one of the most important parts of fire damage restoration. Documentation includes:
- Photos
- Videos
- Estimates
- Invoices
- Inspection Reports
- Cleaning Logs
- Inventory Lists
- Moisture Readings
- Air Quality Concerns
- Communication Records
These documents can all help show what happened and what work may be needed.
Before damaged materials are removed, before smoke-stained items are discarded, before drywall is torn out, before debris is hauled away, and before repairs begin, the damage should be documented as thoroughly as possible. If emergency fire clean up services must begin immediately, document as much as possible before and during the process.
Keep copies of everything connected to the fire damage claim. This includes insurance letters, claim numbers, adjuster reports, contractor estimates, restoration invoices, emergency service records, receipts, emails, text messages, photos, videos, and lists of damaged personal or business property.
DiMartino can help review these materials and identify whether the insurance company’s estimate matches the documented fire damage, smoke damage, soot damage, water damage, contents damage, and restoration needs.
Fire Damage Restoration for Homes and Businesses
Fire damage can affect homes, businesses, rental properties, apartment buildings, restaurants, offices, warehouses, retail spaces, and other commercial buildings throughout Merrillville and Northwest Indiana.
Homeowners may be dealing with:
- Damaged Rooms
- Smoke Odors
- Soot-covered Belongings
- Water Damage
- Temporary Relocation
- Damaged Appliances
- Furniture Loss
- Questions about home insurance fire coverage
Landlords and property managers may need to protect tenants while managing fire restoration, repairs, and insurance communication.
Business owners may face:
- Damaged Inventory
- Equipment Loss
- Interrupted Operations
- Lost Income
- Emergency Cleanup
- Pressure To Reopen Quickly
Commercial fire damage claims can become complicated because the insurance company may dispute not only the physical damage, but also the cost of repair, the timeline for restoration, business interruption, lost income, and the financial impact on the business.
Whether the property is residential or commercial, the recovery process should protect both the building and the fire damage insurance claim connected to it.
When To Contact Ashford & DiMartino
You do not have to wait until your fire damage claim is denied, undervalued, or prolonged to contact Ashford DiMartino & Jones. It may be helpful to reach out when fire damage first happens, when a fire restoration company is beginning work, when an insurance adjuster is scheduled to inspect the property, or when you receive an estimate that seems too low.
Consider contacting us if the insurance company is delaying the claim, disputing the cause or scope of the damage, refusing to pay for certain repairs, ignoring restoration estimates, questioning fire damage restoration costs, undervaluing smoke damage cleaning, or pressuring you to accept a settlement.
The earlier Ashford & DiMartino understands what is happening, the easier it may be to help protect the documentation, review the policy, and identify issues before the claim becomes harder to fix.
Serving Merrillville and Northwest Indiana
Ashford DiMartino & Jones helps homeowners, business owners, landlords, commercial property owners, homeowners associations, and property managers throughout Merrillville and Northwest Indiana with fire damage restoration guidance and insurance claim support.
The firm understands that fire damage can affect more than a building. It can disrupt your family, your business, your tenants, your income, and your sense of security. When the insurance recovery does not match the actual damage, the process becomes even more stressful.
Whether your loss involves fire damage restoration, fire damage clean-up, smoke damage cleaning, smoke remediation, fire and water restoration, emergency board-up, commercial property damage, business interruption, or a disputed fire damage insurance claim, DiMartino can help protect the recovery while the property restoration moves forward.
(Note: We also have dedicated hubs for our neighbors in Crown Point and Chesterton.)
