Untold Stories of a PA: Non-salvage vs Repair

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Untold Stories of a PA Non-salvage vs Repair
Depending on the type of insurance claim you have
you may not have any personal property that was
aected by the loss. Fire and water claims are
losses that typically have damaged personal
property. The extent of the damages determines
if items can be cleaned/repaired or
non-salvaged, meaning you are paid to replace
that item.
For example, a ?re occurs in the kitchen and is
contained in
that room, but smoke
throughout the home. would be
traveled the kitchen in bedrooms
Usually, items in
considered would be considered
non-salvage. Items
cleanable, except for consumable items such as
hygiene, beauty, cleaning, and o ce supplies.
Typically contents like clothing, bedding,
furniture, and décor can usually be
cleaned. Consumable items cannot be cleaned
because they are now contaminated and have gone
through a chemical reaction
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by either the heat or smoke. Restoration
companies, the ones who are most likely to clean
and restore the personal property, do not
include consumables with their scope of work. It
can also be cheaper to replace consumables than
it would be to clean. In our line of adjusting,
we often experience insurance companies who
suggest cleaning for items rather than
replacement because it is cheaper to clean larger
items than to replace them. We have also
experienced an adjuster providing a list of
items that they believed could be cleaned or
repaired when we knew they could not. This is
because the items were either consumable or were
damaged beyond repair. The list consisted of
canvas prints, wrapping paper, tire inner tube,
and tools that were in a burnt tool chest to
name a few. Because the ?re occurred in this room
all the items should be considered non-salvage.
Canvas prints are pores that allow smoke to
penetrate through the material. Wrapping paper
is paper and paper cannot be cleaned. The tire
inner tube is now compromised and will not have
the same function as before. As the tools were in
a tool chest that was burnt, they also cannot be
cleaned or repaired. It is eye-opening and
head-turning to know insurance companies can dig
their heels in especially in situations like
this. If it werent for the homeowner hiring us
the insurance company would have never received
a non-salvage list at length or with great
detail our team was able to prepare. It is sad
to think that without our help the homeowner
might have received payment for cleaning all of
their belongings instead of payment to replace
their belongings.