Contents pack-out after a fire or flood: how it works

What it is and when it is needed

After a significant fire or water loss, belongings are often in the way of the repair and at risk of further damage. A contents pack-out moves them out.

It is usually needed when:

• Smoke or soot has affected the contents of several rooms
• Walls, ceilings or floors must be opened where furniture and belongings sit
• The building will be without heat, power or security
• Items are wet and need specialist drying
• Humidity during drying would harm sensitive items
• The household has to move out during a long repair

For smaller losses, contents are often cleaned on site, or moved to an unaffected room or a storage container on the driveway. That is quicker and cheaper, and a pack-out is not always the right answer.

The steps

1. Assessment

The contractor walks through with you and, usually, the adjuster. They agree what will be cleaned on site, what will be packed out, what will be thrown away and what you will take with you.

2. Inventory

Before anything leaves, it is recorded. A proper inventory includes:

• Each item or box, numbered
• The room it came from
• A description
• Its condition, with existing damage noted
• Photographs
• Barcodes or tags, with many contractors using inventory software

You should receive a copy. This record protects you and the contractor, and it is what the insurer relies on.

3. Packing

Items are wrapped and boxed by room. Fragile items, artwork and electronics are packed with appropriate materials. Boxes are labelled with the room and contents. Soot-covered items are handled so that soot is not ground in. Wet items are separated and sent for drying first.

4. Transport

Items go by enclosed truck to the contractor’s facility.

5. Cleaning and restoration

Different materials go through different processes:

• Hard goods such as dishes, ornaments and tools are cleaned by hand or in ultrasonic tanks, which use sound waves in a cleaning solution to lift soot from detailed surfaces
• Clothing and textiles go to a restoration laundry or dry cleaner
• Upholstery and mattresses are cleaned and deodorised, where restorable
• Electronics are opened, cleaned of soot and corrosion and tested, by a specialist
• Documents and photographs are dried, often by freeze-drying, and cleaned
• Artwork, antiques and rugs go to appropriate specialists
• Furniture is cleaned, deodorised and refinished where needed
• Deodorising in an ozone or hydroxyl chamber follows cleaning for smoke-affected items

6. Storage

Cleaned items are repacked and stored, usually in vaults or on racking in a secure, climate-controlled building, until the house is ready.

7. Pack-back

Items are returned, placed in their rooms and unpacked to the agreed extent. You check them against the inventory and sign off.

What to keep with you

Take these before the pack-out, and tell the contractor:

• Identification, passports and bank cards
• Medication, glasses, hearing aids and medical equipment
• Jewellery, cash and small valuables
• Important documents: insurance, deeds, wills, tax records
• Phones, laptops, chargers and backups
• Keys
• Clothing and toiletries for the coming weeks. Smoke-affected clothing can be cleaned first on a rush basis.
• School and work items
• Children’s comfort items
• Pet supplies
• Firearms, which have their own legal requirements for transport and storage
• Anything irreplaceable that you would rather not let out of your hands

Tell the contractor about items of particular value, monetary or sentimental, so that they are handled and recorded with extra care.

Non-restorable items

Some things cannot be saved, or cost more to restore than to replace. They go on a separate list with photographs. Before anything is disposed of:

• Review the list
• Add details: age, brand, what it cost
• Say so if you disagree, or if something has sentimental value and you want it back regardless
• Confirm that the adjuster has approved disposal

This list becomes part of your contents claim. See home inventory for insurance.

Typical non-restorable items after a fire: food, medicines and cosmetics, anything melted or charred, heavily smoke-damaged mattresses, pillows and soft toys, and inexpensive items where cleaning costs more than replacement. After contaminated water: porous items that were soaked.

Getting something back early

You will find you need things: winter coats, a child’s sports kit, tax papers. Ask how to request items from storage, how much notice is needed and whether there is a charge. A good inventory makes retrieval straightforward.

Questions to ask

• Where will my belongings be stored, and is the facility secure and climate-controlled?
• Is my property insured while in your care and in transit?
• Will I get a full inventory with photographs?
• Who decides what is not restorable?
• How do I get items back during the job?
• How long is storage expected to last, and is it covered by my claim?
• Which specialists do you use for electronics, art and textiles?
• What happens if something is damaged or missing?

How it is paid for

For an insured loss, packing, cleaning, storage and return are normally part of the contents claim, subject to your contents limit. On a large loss, cleaning and storage costs add up and count against that limit along with replacement of items that could not be saved. Ask the adjuster for a running total so that you can make informed choices about what is worth restoring.

Storage is generally covered for the reasonable period of the repair. If the rebuild is delayed, check how long it will continue.

When things come back

• Check items against the inventory as they are unpacked
• Smell them. Properly restored items should not smell of smoke or damp.
• Report damage, missing items or remaining odour promptly and in writing
• Keep the inventory and sign-off documents

Your own preparation helps

A household inventory made before a loss, even a phone video of each room, makes the whole process faster and more accurate.

More: contents cleaning and pack-out.