What to Do After a Storm Damages Your Home

Storm Damages Your Home

Unfortunately, weather events are highly damaging all over the country. Different areas have to deal with climate-specific disasters every year, from hurricanes and snowstorms to mudslides and tornadoes. These storms are becoming more frequent, so it’s vital that you have a plan and know what to do if your home has been damaged during a storm.

Here are the steps you need to take after a destructive storm hits your home or property.

1) Stay Safe, Stay Calm

It’s easier said than done, but damaged homes are unstable and unsafe, so it’s best not to go running through the property and panic. If you’re still in the house, find a safe pathway and stay out. Watch your step! Broken glass, nails, and displaced screws are all standard after any storm damage. Your walls or roof may also be compromised and in danger of collapsing, so watch out for any cracks or signs that these might cave in.

Be aware of gas leak signs. Gas lines are another common fixture affected by heavy weather and home damage. If you smell gas, turn off the gas line to your home or call for help quickly. Look for downed power lines and always assume they are live — stay at least 10 feet away. Don’t step in standing water, and don’t light any matches until you’re sure it’s safe, as you don’t know where there may be gas leaks.

Once the storm has entirely passed, you can begin looking for the damage. You’ll have to stay calm and organized through the following steps, but remember that it’s likely your homeowner’s insurance policy will cover a majority of the damage.

2) Start Taking Photos Immediately

When you’re sure everyone is safe, you can take photos around the property. Luckily, this is no longer a difficult task with quality smartphones. Take as many pictures from various angles as you can. This is evidence for the insurance company. You should focus on getting photos of broken walls, doors, shingles, or other structural damage. Stay safe while doing this! You should only take photos of areas you can actually access without being harmed. The insurance company will eventually send an adjuster to take photos of any damage you can’t access right away.

It’s also important to get pictures of damaged electric appliances (like AC units) and your personal property if it was destroyed or affected by the storm. Note and photograph any moisture damage after a flood or hurricane, as water can ruin carpets, seep under the walls, lead to mold, etc. If there’s fire damage, it’s vital to document everything, including down electrical wires and power lines.

3) Contact Your Insurance Agent

You should contact your insurance agent as soon as possible after the storm. You’ll have to file a claim and submit all the photographs you took as proof. Depending on what your policy covers, if your home is too damaged to live in, insurance may cover a hotel or temporary housing. Your agent will have to walk you through the following steps, so stay in contact with them until your claim is resolved.

4) Keep Everything Documented

To get the total payout you’re expecting from your insurance company, you must keep everything documented. Note down when you spoke to your agent and filed the claim, keep any receipts for hotels, or any clean-up or construction that has to happen to make your property habitable.

5) Contact a Trusted Remodeling Company

Classic Construction serves Richmond, VA, homeowners after natural disasters of all kinds and understands how stressful the situation can be for families. We make the process of remodeling your home as easy as possible, so you can get back in there and enjoy your space again. Call us at 804-794-5690 or get a free quote online — our friendly staff is waiting to hear from you!

Author: Classic Construction

Established in 2001, Classic Construction has since become one of the leading Richmond remodeling companies. With decades in the home improvement industry, Brian Holder, company president, is intimately involved with every project and works with our vendors and installation crews to ensure every job runs smoothly and meets our high standards of quality and customer satisfaction.

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Joe R.

We recently replaced our deck with a screened in porch and wheelchair ramp for our daughter. From start to finish, this was by far the best remodeling experience that we have ever had. Juston,the project manager did more listening than talking and selling. What a relief! Brent and Dave,the crew, we’re organized,clean, and the quality of the finished product was amazing. We would highly recommend this company for any of your remodeling needs and we will definitely use them for any future needs of ours.

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Cindy E.

We’ve been enjoying our deck and four-season sunroom since they were installed last summer. From the time we starting working with Classic Construction on the design through completion of the project we received exemplary service. The quotes were thorough, the team accomplished everything in the contract and more. The quality of the workmanship was excellent and the follow-through with a couple of minor issues was done in a timely fashion. Overall the entire project exceeded our expectations. We would definitely recommend Classic Construction for anyone looking for top quality design and installation. Thank you!

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Bill B.

Classic Construction recently completed a three-season addition, and complete deck resurface project for us, and we could not be happier with the results. This was by far, the best remodeling experience we have ever had. Juston, the Project Manager, was great to work with. He kept us informed every step along the process, and was willing to make whatever changes we requested along the way. Even wIth all the issues cause be the Covid epidemic, and supply chain issues, he did a great job of managing his way through it. The crew leader, Brent, is a true professional in his craft. The quality of his and his crews work is second to none. He also offer several great suggestions and ideas as the project progressed, and we couldn’t be happier with the finished project. I would highly recommend Classic Construction to any one who wants quality work done at a fair price.

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Dan S.

Awesome experience! My wife and I hired Classic Construction to replace our old Masonite siding with vinyl and we are completely satisfied with the finished product. Brian Holder provided us with the initial estimate, and he was our contact person throughout the project; as he kept us well informed every step of the way. Brian was very detailed and perceptive during the initial walkthrough of our project, took great notes, and went over every single one of our questions. Also, Jimmy and his crew are amazing! They are expert installers of siding. They work well as a team, pay attention to details, and kept us well informed of their progress. In addition to replacing the siding we had Classic replace our door to a sliding door on the back of the house, which worked out wonderfully! We were in such great hands from start to finish and felt so comfortable. Now our house looks brand new and we continue to get compliments from family and neighbors, so to finish this off we HIGHLY recommend Classic Construction. We plan to update the bathrooms and the kitchen next and will be using Classic Construction again!

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Steve J.

We had a great experience with this company from the quote to the completion of the work. The quote was well prepared and thorough and they took the time to go into the details of the work. Mike Paris was the Project Manager and keep us informed at all times. Jimmy’s crew was outstanding with the quality of work provided. We picked them out of the four estimates we received and are glad we picked them. Very good company to deal with.

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Fred T.

Great experience, great workmanship, great communication, great result! We hired Classic Construction to replace our masonite siding with HardiePlank, and we are completely satisfied with the end result. Mike Paris provided us with the initial estimate, and he was our contact person throughout the project – he kept us well informed every step of the way. Whenever there was the slightest issue, Mike addressed it promptly and it was resolved to our satisfaction. Chuck was the carpenter who re-built the deck – nice “picture frame” design, good solid feel – we love the white and black railings. Jimmy and his crew are amazing! They are expert installers of HardiePlank siding. They work well as a team and pay attention to details. In addition to replacing the siding we had Classic replace our deck and four doors. Now our house looks brand new and is low maintenance. We continue to get compliments from neighbors, and we highly recommend Classic Construction.

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Robert R.

We began soliciting bids for a screen porch to replace our existing deck during the summer of 2019. Juston from Classic Construction was one of several people we met with to get proposals. He did not rush through our initial meeting (as others did), taking his time to explain various options and making recommendations based on his experience. We initially thought we could use our existing deck framing as a base for the screen porch; other companies went along with that scenario but Juston said there were too many unknowns with the condition of the structure. He preferred to bid the job including new framing, and his bid was competitive with others that planned to use the existing framing. He was very prompt in getting us the quote, which was more detailed than the majority of the bids we received. When we had questions regarding the quote he offered to come back for another in person meeting, bringing samples of all of the materials he proposed. We delayed our decision for several months, but ultimately our experience with Juston, coupled with the many positive reviews we read regarding Classic, led us to award them the job. Our job was assigned to Brent and his crew, who are extremely skilled and professional. We were impressed with their daily progress; they completed the job in ten work days. They arrived each morning around 8:00 AM, and worked diligently throughout the day. Brent was patient with my frequent questions, and he offered suggestions that improved

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Ralph N.

We would DEFINITELY recommend Classic Construction to anyone interested in home improvement. They tore off our old deck and put a BEAUTIFUL screened porch on 3 years ago and we knew they were who we wanted to do this big project. Mike Paris was EXCEPTIONAL! He was very personable and easy to contact and talk to. He put no pressure on us but gave us excellent ideas and suggestions. He put us in touch with Brian Gray to get our roof put on first. Brian’s crew did an excellent job and Brian went out of his way in regards to customer service. They repaired multiple areas on our roof before installing the shingles. They were very polite and worked quickly and cleaned everything up. Jason and Mark installed new windows and new siding. They were extremely polite and helpful with EVERY aspect of the project. They even worked on Christmas Eve to stay on schedule. We can’t say enough about the FANTASTIC job they did! Brent and David tore off and put on a new front porch. They completely rebuilt the porch and it is BETTER and more sturdy than when it was brand new. They ran into a few problems and Brent had EXCELLENT ideas on how to make things work and look great. They even found new stair railings to match our existing vinyl rails. Mike made sure that Brent put on our front porch as he knew how extremely happy we were with the job that he did on our screened porch. Every person involved in our remodeling project was polite, helpful, and clean. We are EXTREMELY happy with the way the p

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Sarah A.

We are so pleased with how our siding project turned out! Everyone was very professional and took excellent care of our home. Juston was very helpful and informative and took plenty of time with us to explain the differences in our choices and in helping us narrow down what would be best for our home. Jimmy and the crew was top notch! Very detailed and took wonderful care of home all throughout the project. We are thrilled with the end result and would highly recommend them.