The one event, four players problem
A pipe lets go behind the washing machine. Within a week you will have talked to a plumber, a “mitigation” crew, a “restoration” contractor, and an insurance adjuster — and if you call them in the wrong order, you will either pay twice or hand your insurer a reason to deny the claim. Nobody explains the division of labor, so here it is.
Who does what — the whole map
The plumber fixes the source. Pipes, supply lines, valves, the failed water heater. Typically $75–$150/hour plus a $200–$300 emergency call-out after hours. Here’s the part that surprises people: the plumber’s bill is often NOT covered by insurance. The failed pipe itself is “wear and tear” — your policy covers what the water ruined, not the part that failed.
The mitigation crew stops the damage from getting worse. Extraction pumps, industrial dehumidifiers, air movers, moisture meters. Water extraction runs $3.75–$4.25 per square foot for clean water, $4.10–$7.50 for gray or black water (more on those words below). This is the time-critical trade: drying that starts within 24–48 hours usually prevents mold; drying that starts on day four often doesn’t, and mold remediation runs $1,500–$9,000 on top of everything else.
The restoration contractor rebuilds. New drywall ($1.50–$3 per square foot), flooring, insulation, paint. A typical full restoration project lands between $1,200 and $5,000. This phase is NOT urgent — it must wait until moisture readings say the framing is dry, and you can take bids like any renovation.
The insurer pays — for some of it, sometimes. Covered when the cause was sudden and accidental; denied when they classify it as gradual. That distinction has its own trapdoors — we cover whether to call insurance at all and why water claims get denied separately, because both deserve more than a paragraph.
The order, minute by minute
- Kill the water. Main shut-off valve: basement, garage, crawl space, or at the street. Everything else waits.
- Kill the power to wet areas if water is anywhere near outlets or fixtures. Breaker panel, not a wet switch.
- Plumber — if the source is plumbing and won’t stay off without a repair.
- Photograph everything, before cleanup. The claim is built on these photos. Standing water, the failed part, every damaged item.
- Insurer’s claims line. Report it. Ask two questions: “what’s my deductible” and “is emergency mitigation authorized” (it virtually always is — the policy requires you to prevent further damage).
- Mitigation crew. Same day or next morning. The mold clock does not care about adjuster schedules.
- Adjuster inspects. Keep the dried-out ruined materials until they’ve seen them (or photographed thoroughly).
- Restoration bids. Only now. Two or three quotes, like any other job.
Clean, gray, black: why the same puddle costs triple
Mitigation pricing runs on water category, and it’s worth knowing the words before someone uses them on an invoice:
- Clean (Category 1): from a supply line or rain — $3.75–$4.25/sq ft to extract.
- Gray (Category 2): washing machine, dishwasher, tub overflow — mildly contaminated, $4.10–$6.50/sq ft.
- Black (Category 3): sewage or outside floodwater — $7–$7.50/sq ft, and porous materials it touched (carpet, drywall) generally get discarded, not dried.
A crew that classifies your burst supply line as Category 3 is padding the invoice. A crew that calls a sewage backup Category 1 is cutting corners with your health. Either direction, the words on the estimate should match the source of the water.
The three expensive mistakes
Calling restoration before the water is dead. Rebuild work over a live leak or damp framing is money burned — and it seals moisture in, which is how you buy the $1,500–$9,000 mold job later.
Authorizing full restoration before the adjuster. Emergency mitigation: always fine. Demolition and rebuild on day one, before the insurer has seen anything: routinely disputed. The insurer can refuse costs they never got the chance to assess.
Signing whatever the mitigation crew hands you at 2am. Some of that paperwork is a work authorization (fine). Some of it is an Assignment of Benefits that signs your claim over to the company. Read for the words “assignment of benefits” — you can decline that clause and still get the same crew working the same night.
If you rent
The building is the landlord’s problem and cost — call their emergency line first, report in writing, photograph your belongings. The landlord’s insurance covers the structure; only a renters policy covers your things. The order above still applies, but “insurer” means theirs for the building and yours for your stuff.