Why Your Restoration Deposit Equals Your Deductible
BYSteve Jafari, General ManagerNORTHERN VIRGINIA, MARYLAND & D.C.
Your agreement is with Restoration Doctor, which invoices the property owner. You are responsible for payment under your signed agreement, whether or not your insurer pays. The deposit collected at signing is set at the deductible stated on your policy and is credited against the invoice. Payment is due when the work is complete, and the card placed on file at signing is how the balance is normally settled. Coverage depends on your policy and your insurer's decision. Questions about coverage belong with your insurer, your agent, or a licensed public adjuster or attorney.
Call 1-888-29-FLOODWho do I pay for water mitigation?
You pay Restoration Doctor. The agreement you sign during a water emergency is between you, the property owner, and us. Restoration Doctor invoices the property owner. You are responsible for payment under your signed agreement, whether or not your insurer pays.
Your insurance policy is a separate agreement between you and your insurer. Coverage depends on your policy and your insurer's decision. Questions about coverage belong with your insurer, your agent, or a licensed public adjuster or attorney.
Restoration Doctor is a water mitigation company. We are not a public adjuster or an attorney, and nothing here is legal or insurance advice.
Why is the deposit set at the amount of my deductible?
Restoration Doctor sets the deposit at the amount of the deductible stated on the owner's policy. The deposit is collected when the work authorization is signed and is credited against the invoice.
Setting the deposit at a figure already written in your own policy keeps the first conversation short. A figure that already exists is faster to agree on than one estimated on a wet floor after midnight.
The deposit is a payment on account. It does not cap what you owe, and it does not set a fixed price. The invoice is written from the work performed and the readings that show the work was needed.
What does the deposit confirm?
A signed authorization records what work was requested. A deposit records that both sides meant it. Together they are the ordinary way a service agreement becomes real: one side commits to perform, the other commits money against the price.
This matters more in an emergency than on a planned job, because nobody has a finished scope yet. Moisture has to be mapped and the affected materials identified before the full extent of the work is known. Equipment goes in, and drying starts, on the strength of a signature and a deposit.
Why does drying start right away?
Wet drywall, framing and insulation stay wet until something removes the water. The longer materials stay wet, the more of them may need to be removed instead of dried in place. For that reason we begin mitigation once the work authorization is signed.
Mitigation and any later repair are separate decisions. Drying the structure is what we do. Repairs after drying are outside this post.
When is the balance due, and how is it paid?
Payment for services is due when the services are complete. The equipment comes out, the final invoice is written from what was actually performed, and the balance is due at that point.
The card placed on file at signing is how the balance is normally settled. We state the term plainly because a vague payment term is where billing disputes start.
If completion will be difficult for you, tell us early and in writing.
| Question | Your agreement with Restoration Doctor | Your policy with your insurer |
|---|---|---|
| Who the parties are | You, the property owner, and Restoration Doctor | You and your insurance company |
| What it records | The work requested and the price of the work performed | The terms between you and your insurer |
| Who sends you an invoice | Restoration Doctor | Not applicable |
| Where the deductible appears | Collected as the deposit at signing and credited to your balance | Stated in your policy |
| Who decides what is paid | Not applicable | Your insurer, under your policy |
What documentation does Restoration Doctor provide?
For every mitigation job we produce the records below, and you receive them. We share these records with your insurer at your request. If your insurer asks us for our records, we provide them with your permission.
- An itemized invoice, priced line by line for the work performed
- Daily moisture readings for each affected area, with the temperature and humidity conditions they were taken in
- A drying record showing what was wet on arrival and what the readings were each day
- An equipment log showing what ran, where it ran and for how many unit-days, a unit-day being one machine running for one day
- Time-stamped photographs of the affected materials, the work performed and the equipment in place
What does a restoration contractor not do?
Virginia defines public adjusting in Va. Code § 38.2-1845.1 as "soliciting, investigating, negotiating, adjusting, or providing advice to a policyholder in relation to first party claims." Restoration Doctor does not do that work. We document what we found and what we did, and we invoice the property owner.
Coverage depends on your policy and your insurer's decision. Questions about coverage belong with your insurer, your agent, or a licensed public adjuster or attorney. Restoration Doctor is a water mitigation company. We are not a public adjuster or an attorney, and nothing here is legal or insurance advice.
