First hour checklist
Two questions, then a numbered list: what to do and what not to do in the first hour after water, fire, sewage or flood damage.
Open the tool Water, fire and mold restoration referral service
Water, fire or mold damage? Send the request now. We pass it to one restoration company serving your ZIP code.
Within a day or two, a burst pipe can become a mold problem: EPA says water-damaged areas and items need to dry within 24 to 48 hours. So send the request first and sort out the insurance after. While a company is on the way, the first-hour checklist tells you what to switch off, what to photograph and what to leave alone.
Water still coming in, or fire or smoke?
Fire, smoke or doubt about the structure: leave and call 911 first. Otherwise use the form below and tick Emergency, and one restoration company that serves your ZIP code will call you.
Ready now? Request a company
- One company gets your requestNo list of bidders: the company that receives your request is the one that calls, and the consent line on the form says so before you send anything.
- Your state's rules, in plain wordsWhich licenses apply, what a private credential such as IICRC is and is not, and what insurance and flood cover typically pay, each with a link to the page it came from.
- Estimates, marked as estimatesWe have not collected quotes yet, and every cost table says so. Each table starts with an estimate or says there is none, and beside it we show a federal wage or a loss figure from a regulator or an agency, with its source.
Request sent
We passed your job request to one restoration company serving your area. Keep your phone nearby.
- 1The company calls or texts from its own number, which may not look familiar, and we do not control when. If you have heard nothing after one business day, treat the request as unmatched and call your insurer if you have not.
- 2Before you agree to any work, ask which licenses your state requires and check them with your state. Ask for a written scope and price, and do not sign an insurance check over before your insurer knows.
- 3Reply STOP to any text to end texts. To stop us sharing your details, use the Do Not Sell or Share page.
If you smell gas at any point, leave the house and call 911, then your gas utility from outside. Do not try to shut off a gas valve yourself.
Before they arrive
- Keep photographing as the water spreads, and film each wet room before anything is moved.
- Move valuables and electronics out of the wet area if it is dry underfoot.
- Do not run fans on sewage or flood water.
- Have the policy number and your insurer's claim line ready, and write down the date, name and claim number of every call.
- Keep every receipt for emergency supplies and temporary repairs.
11restoration jobs explained, each with a first-hour checklist
3short tools you can use before you give a phone number
24 to 48 hoursEPA's window to dry water-damaged areas and items to prevent mold growth
About 10 sq ftEPA's size under which most people can handle mold themselves
Services
All 11 servicesThe 11 jobs we cover, and what each one involves
Each service page opens with what to do first and the first hour. It then says what a crew does, what the cost evidence looks like, when the job cannot wait and what licenses apply. Where we found no source, the page says so rather than guessing.
Water damage
From the first request to drying and repair, with the insurance steps.
What it costsFlooded basement
Pumping out, safety, and which policy answers for the water.
What it costsMold remediation
What the state does and does not regulate, and how to vet a company.
What it costsFire and smoke
First steps, claim rules, permits and smoke and soot cleanup.
What it costsSewage cleanup
Safety, what to discard, who pays, and the 45-day notice.
What it costsStorm damage
Downed lines, board-up, drying, debris and who pays.
What it costs
How it works
How a request becomes a company's call
Three steps, with nothing for sale at the end. We do not perform work, hold a certification or set prices. Restoration companies pay us for requests; you never do.
How we are paid- 01
Pick the job and add your ZIP code
On the form it is one tap for the job, then five digits. If no company we send to serves your ZIP, the form says so now, before it asks for your phone number.
- 02
Say how to reach you
Name, phone and email go on the last step, with a line beside each saying why we ask. Only the company that gets your request is meant to call the number you give.
- 03
One company calls
It names its own price and scope, and you can say no. If nobody calls, no company took the job, and the guides and tools on this site are the next step.
Tools
Three tools you can use before you give a phone number
A first hour checklist, a water category explainer that labels what is industry standard and what we have not confirmed, and a will-insurance-pay tool. None asks for your name.
Water category explainer
Where did the water come from? What the IICRC S500 industry standard says about Category 3, what we cannot confirm, and what to ask a company.
Open the toolWill insurance pay?
Pick the cause of the damage and what you hold. State insurance regulator and NFIP facts on burst pipes, sewer backup, sump failure, flood and fire.
Open the toolCoverage
Find your state
Michigan is live now, with its own rules, city pages and guides. Other states are opening, and each gets its own pages only once we have sourced its rules. Pick yours to see where it stands.
Pick your state
If your state is not live yet, the form says so before it asks for your phone number.
Opening soon: every stateCity by city, state by state
Where a state is live, each city page names its permit office where we found one, and what the city says about sewer backups and flooding. A gap in what we found is marked as a gap.
Guides
Guides written for your state's rules
The guides cover first-hour steps, insurance claims, flood and sewer backup coverage, mold, fire, drying and choosing a company. Each lists its sources at the bottom, and each is tagged with the state whose rules it describes.
A burst pipe: the first hour, step by step
A water damage insurance claim: steps, clocks and who to call
After a house fire: the first steps, the claim clocks and the cleanup
Basement flooding in spring: what the record shows and what to do first
Choosing a restoration company: what to check before you sign
Does your state license mold remediators? What the regulator says
For restoration companies
Restoration companies: receive these requests
If you run a restoration company and want homeowner requests for the services and ZIP codes you choose, the partner page explains what we send and how to apply.
See the partner pageWe keep the license number you give us on file.See the partner pagesupport@restorationmatchusa.com