If you experience a house fire, you’ll be left feeling devastated, confused, and worried about the future. While it’s not easy to overcome the emotion you’ll be feeling, it’s important to get yourself and your family’s life back on track as soon as you can. Here are some things you should do to make your recovery go more smoothly:

Get in touch with your insurance company

The quicker you get the ball rolling on starting an insurance claim, the quicker you’ll see the benefits of that claim. You may receive a “loss of use” payment that can help with daily living expenses. If you do receive these payments, make sure to keep track of all your receipts so that you can back up your spending. Your insurance agent can also help you get in touch with a trusted restoration company.

Figure out a temporary living situation

Chances are, you won’t be able to stay in your home so you’ll need to find somewhere you can live for the time being. Not everyone has the option to stay with family and friends, but there are still other options available. There should be a local disaster relief agency that can help house you temporarily. Look for branches of the Salvation Army or American Red Cross in your area.

Get any pets checked out

In addition to the stress, they’ll feel, it can be harder to recognize the signs of health problems in pets following a fire. Smoke can damage their lungs like anyone else’s, and their fur can cover up burns that a veterinarian will find and treat.

Get your hands on the fire report

Your insurance agency will need proof and details regarding the damage to your home, and your local fire department will be able to provide a copy of the fire report to help you with those details.

Secure your home

Unless your home is damaged beyond repair, you’ll want to keep an eye on it. The damage can open up your home to the elements, so find ways to protect your home from rain, snow, or wild animals. Also, a fire-damaged home with valuables still in it can become a target for break-ins, so regularly check your home to make sure all your things are still there.

Keep your finances in mind

It can be easy to forget monthly payments in the whirlwind of responsibilities you now have, but you don’t want to add to your stress by missing those payments. If you’ve lost credit cards in the fire, make sure to send for a new one right away. Also, even if your home burns down you will still have to pay for your mortgage.

Care for your loved ones

A house fire is a disastrous event for everyone living there. It might sound tough to comfort someone when you’re devastated yourself, but it’s important to care for the mental health of your loved ones. You don’t have to go through the pain alone, and they don’t deserve to either. Coming together will help you all get through the process a little easier.

Recover the possessions that you can

If you don’t keep a home inventory, you may want to start that now. Keeping a record of what you have, when you bought it, and how much money can save you tons of time and money in the event of a fire. If you have a homeowner’s insurance policy, they generally cover items lost in a fire. With your home inventory, you can give an accurate record to the insurance company and likely get back the actual cash value of what was lost. Plus, you may even have the replacement cost of some items covered.

Adams Complete Cleaning & Restoration | Residential and commercial restoration & more

At Adams Complete Cleaning & Restoration, we are here for you in the event of a disaster. We’ve helped many families recover from house fires, and we want you to know you can depend on us, too. Since 2000, we have been providing restoration services for all manner of disasters, as well as regular cleaning services.

We offer 24-hour emergency service so that we can have your back anytime you need us. With our 20 years of experience, we have the expertise to get the restoration process started and finished as efficiently and effectively as possible. We’ve made it our business to help people through loss, and our number one priority is to deliver kind, compassionate customer service that will aid you during a difficult time.

For all your disaster restoration needs, give Adam’s Complete Cleaning & Restoration a call at (586) 701-8428 or fill out the contact form on our website for more information.