Loss
Control in Mold & Water Damage Claims
By Author: Robert E. Sheriff, CIH, CSP
CEO & President
Insurance companies and claims adjusters have
a formidable task before them when dealing with
water damage and mold claims. Often the event
that resulted in water damage or mold growth
is not so clear.
What if the home or building is vacant? Did
the mold grow because it was hot and damp in
a un-air conditioned building? Did broken windows
or leaky roofs cause water damage over months
or years? Did mold grow due to a poorly vented
kitchen stove that allowed moisture to encourage
mold growth on the walls and ceilings? Was it
a damp basement that resulted in moldy, damp
rotted walls, studs, ceilings, carpets and furniture?
In most insurance policies, the water damage
must be from a “sudden and accidental event.”
Mold growth and damage is often excluded from
coverage and also, any illness that the claimant
alleges was due to mold is not covered.
There is certainly a basis for the exclusion
of illness coverage for mold due to the great
variety of illnesses claimed. It is certainly
true that molds can cause allergies and trigger
asthma attacks in a good number of individuals
– possibly as high as 5-10% of the population.
But the claims of a host of other malaise, as,
paralysis, lethargy, migraines, memory loss,
digestive tract problems, cancer and many more,
are largely disproved except possibly in individuals
with already compromised health problems such
as those on immune suppressant drugs, the very
young or the very old. Certainly the illness
claims attributed to “Black Mold” also referred
to as “Toxic Mold” - known scientifically as
Stachybotrys-have largely been disproved.
So how does a claims adjuster assess the damage
due to water and mold?
The first issue is:
What was the cause/source?
Was it a broken potable water
pipe?
This is important because bacteria would
not normally be associated with such an
event involving clean drinkable water.
Was it a broken sewer line?
Contaminated waste as well as water may
be involved – and bacteria will likely be
present. It’s more than just water, its
waste material that has to be cleaned up
– not just dried out and left there.
Was it a flood?
This also involves the possibility of
contaminated debris and bacteria and also
that the water and debris generally is
present for some time (until the flood
recedes).
The second issue is:
How long was the water present?
A quick flood that drains off rapidly
allows for clean-up with much less damage
and less possibility of mold growth.
The third issue is:
How fast did clean up/drying out take?
The faster the water source can be stopped,
the wet structures or furniture cleaned
and the enclosed space dehumidified the
less the damage. In fact, if clean-up
and dehumidification can occur in 48 hours
or less much can be restored. (This is
generally not true of sheetrock unless
it is the water resistant sheetrock such
as “greenboard” or “paperless” sheetrock.)
Most molds take 48 hours or more to really
get a foothold and propagate extensively.
Carpets that are flooded or water damaged
due to sewer line breakage or back-up
usually have to be discarded. Even potable
water damaged carpets have to be cleaned
and dried within 2/3 days or they will
smell “musty” and generally cannot be
de-odorized very effectively.
The fourth issue is:
Was the water damage due to efforts to put out
a fire?
The combination of fire and water damage
compounds the problems, since fire damage
assessments generally take much longer
to address. By then, the effect of water
damage is well past the 48 hours and most
things affected by water damage have to
be removed and replaced – due to water
damage, mold growth, and smoke damage.
Most claims groups have their own water damage
inspection checklists. By and large they are
good.
The issue is not thoroughness of a checklist
that can control the loss, its speed!
The faster the claims process can begin, the
lower the insured losses will be! 48 to 72 hours
is the maximum for effective loss control.
Also, the faster the de-humidification can
begin the lower the loss. This is often overlooked.
Often, the Dry-out process does not begin until
the physical clean-up is complete. WRONG APPROACH.
Start using blowers and dehumidifiers as soon
as clean-up starts. As the air dries out, it
draws moisture from the water soaked surfaces!
Also, mold will not grow effectively on a surface
that is loosing its moisture. Mold grows effectively
when the environment is receptive and stable.
That is: warm, dark, steadily wet, and stagnant.
Most claims organizations believe the best
loss control approach when water damage and
mold are involved is thoroughness. That’s only
part of it! The other essential element is SPEED.
- SPEED to do the claims site visits
- SPEED to begin drying out.
- SPEED to remove damaged surfaces
and furnishings so that what’s remaining
can be salvaged and restored.
- SPEED to prevent mold growth,
thus less the opportunity to claim illness.
You will have a much greater opportunity to
be thorough – with less loss – if the process
gets started SPEEDILY.
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