Short answer: Don’t attempt cleanup yourself, secure the property, contact your insurance company to start the claim, and get in touch with us to begin documenting damage for your adjuster — before anything gets disturbed.
Long answer: The first day after a fire is overwhelming, and it’s easy to either do too much or too little. A few things matter most:
Don’t try to clean soot or smoke residue yourself — it can grind into surfaces and make professional restoration harder, and disturbing damage before it’s documented can complicate your claim. Do secure the property against weather and further loss (boarded windows, tarped roof sections) if it’s safe to do so.
Contact your insurance company as soon as possible to open the claim and get a claim number — this starts the clock on your coverage. Then get us involved early. We document damage the way an adjuster needs to see it, and because we have a licensed adjuster on our own team, we know what’s likely to be questioned or missed in the initial scope.
You don’t have to manage this process alone or figure out what’s “normal” — that’s exactly the navigation we provide, separate from the physical rebuild itself.
Better Than Before Restoration provides free fire, water, and storm damage inspections for homeowners in Northwest Alabama and Southern Middle Tennessee. We’ll give you straight answers and help you along the way if you are to experience a fire and need to file a claim.
(256) 740-FIRE