Home Improvement
What to Do if Your Home is Damaged by a Flood
Water is a vital part of life and essential to survival, but sometimes water can be a destructive force and cause significant damage. If your home floods either because of a natural disaster or a plumbing emergency, it can have a devastating impact, causing a lot of disruption and upset.
Research predicts there will be an increased level of extreme precipitation that could see the number of flooding incidents rise in the coming years. With this in mind, knowing what to do if your home floods is a great way to protect your home and possessions.
Be Prepared
Ensuring you are prepared for a disaster situation is the best way to minimize the damage and disruption it causes. If you live in an area that is prone to flooding, it is even more critical you prepare for potential flood situations.
Putting together an emergency plan to follow should a disaster strike will help you act fast if a flood occurs. Following your emergency plan should give you the best chance to protect your loved ones and possessions. Having a bag packed up with emergency supplies that you can quickly grab to take with you will ensure you have all you need if you have to leave your home suddenly with little warning.
Keeping up to date with local weather reports and flood risk alerts is also vital to give you enough time to prepare and protect yourself from the flood. You may want to stock up on flood barriers such as sandbags to reduce the water’s chances of entering your home.
Contact Your Insurer
Once everyone is safely away from the flood and out of danger, it is crucial to contact your insurance company. Your insurer will advise the best way to record the damage your home has suffered due to the flood. You may be asked to take photos or film the damage if it is safe for you to do so.
However, clearing up the damage before you speak to your insurer could jeopardize your claim, so it is vital to establish what they need from you first.
Call in Professional Help
In some situations, the flood damage at your property may be limited to just one area of your home. However, sometimes the damage is extensive and impacts the entire house. In extreme situations, the flood may cause structural damage to your home, leaving it unsafe to return until the extent of the damage has been assessed and reconstruction work carried out.
Therefore, it is vital to call in a Water Damage Company to handle the clean-up of your property. Getting your home ready to move back into is about more than simply drying it out.
You need to know that it has been hygienically cleaned and is safe to enter in case the floodwater contained traces of sewage or chemicals. You also need to know your house has been thoroughly dried out as mold can start to develop quickly if it is not dealt with effectively.
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