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A Unified Industry: RIA’s First Virtual International Restoration Convention + Industry Expo Wraps Up

October 1, 2020 5:53 am

RIA capped off the International Restoration Convention and Industry Expo Virtual Conference, an inaugural two-day virtual convention that took place October 6-7. Featuring more than 40 exhibiting companies, over 550 total participants, and a digital exhibit hall (that generated over 4,000 clicks), participants took part in a wide range of exhibits, speakers, panels, and more. Kelley Dolan, the chair of the Convention Planning Committee, was pleased to see so many RIA members come together to share their knowledge. “It has been inspirational to get this involved in RIA’s annual conventions,” Dolan said. “I have

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Recruiting and Retaining Quality Employees in the Restoration Industry

September 28, 2020 10:24 am

Recruiting, hiring, and retaining quality employees is hard for any business, but for the restoration industry it’s a task that can add more stress than it should. Restoration involves complicated and messy jobs, and restoration business owners want to hire the right people to do the work correctly, the first time. Below, you’ll find a few helpful tips on how to find, hire, and retain quality workers for your restoration business. Where to Look While traditional job boards such as Indeed.com might be the go-to forum for your candidate search, there are specialized recruiting

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Are You Ready When the Storm Comes?

July 1, 2020 2:18 pm

Targeted Ad Campaigns for Water Damage Marketing A majority of water damage companies tend to focus their lead-capturing strategies within their local markets. However, if there is one thing to understand and endorse completely, it is this – opportunities to capture quality leads can spring up suddenly and in unexpected places. The question is, are you ready? Monetizing an Opportunity As mentioned above, most businesses focus on their local markets. But what about a market that is 50 to 100 miles away? Given the cost factor, advertising that far from your regular area does

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Insurance Considerations for Those Doing COVID-19 Work

April 1, 2020 12:59 am

The market for COVID-19 contractors was changing daily, and now is changing weekly, as carriers become more experienced at underwriting this class of business. At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, we were bombarded with questions from our broker partners and insureds, about whether they were covered for any work involving viruses. We began pulling policies from all the markets in the restoration marketplace to conduct a coverage forms review. There are currently four carriers writing business with positive grants of coverage for viruses in their definition of pollutants. Several carriers advised us that

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Protection from Environmental Dangers During Fire Restoration

February 25, 2020 2:33 pm

Introduction According to The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), every 24 seconds a fire department in the United States responds to a fire somewhere in the nation. Although the number of fires and direct fire deaths has decreased significantly since the 1970s, the NFPA and multiple government agencies are increasingly focused on the long-term risk to the health of those individuals that respond to fires. While a majority of the research related to risk from fire contaminants is focused on the firefighters, the implications for restoration contractors are substantial. This reference article is designed to summarize

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Fentanyl Safety Awareness

February 25, 2020 10:01 am

Why Fentanyl Awareness? Although fentanyl does not pose the same risk for restoration workers as it does for police officers and first responders, it is still important to be aware of the dangers that fentanyl possesses and how to correctly identify it on the job. Fentanyl exists in both a legal and an illicit form and, as a restorer, you are most likely to encounter prescription fentanyl. To read the full article and to learn more about what fentanyl is, how to identify it, and how to protect yourself from exposure, please click here. The

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Managing Your Online Reputation

February 19, 2020 10:13 am

Your company’s online presence goes far beyond just your own website. Potential customers may find you on Facebook, Yelp, Angie’s List or any other platform where people are sharing information. And what they find there can have a big impact on whether or not they choose you to be their service provider. To put your best digital foot forward, it’s essential to be aware of what the internet is saying about your business, both favorable and unfavorable. This way you can take advantage of good publicity and reviews—and to be prepared in the event of

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A Fundamental Partnership

February 12, 2020 9:58 am

The work performed for cleaning, inspection, and restoration should not be taken lightly. There are specific skills you must learn to return to normalcy in chaotic environments while protecting the safety of home or business owners. The restoration and cleaning industries are constantly evolving. With this, consumers want to distinguish true professionals from dishonest predators preying on their need to mitigate disasters. How can one stand out from the crowd? Find the right organization to partner with. An Organization that sets the Standards When an organization leads the industry by creating universally accepted concepts and

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Restoration Advocacy Report #7: The Future is Now

February 3, 2020 4:32 am

The RIA’s Advocacy and Government Affairs (AGA) Committee was conceived to unify the restoration industry around a set of common goals, to advocate for the best interests of restorers, and to achieve a fair and level playing field, both legally and financially, with insurers and their partners.  AGA has formulated a number of positions on key issues that are adversely affecting restorers’ bottom lines.  One of the primary initiatives is to ensure that restorers are paid a fair price for their work.  To be sustainable, the price must not only be fair to restorers,

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5 Questions with Barry Swidler

January 29, 2020 3:26 pm

Barry Swidler is a fourth-generation owner of American Fire Restoration, a family business that began in 1917. He is currently the president of that company, based in Queens, New York. He is also the chair of the RIA Advocacy and Government Affairs (AGA) Committee’s Third Party Consultants (TPC) Subcommittee. You currently chair the AGA’s TPC subcommittee that addresses their contractor challenges. What inspired you to lead this cause? I was interested in getting involved and leading the TPC subcommittee because we find over and over again that we are treated unfairly by TPCs. Sometimes,

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