The IICRC is the regulatory group that sets the standard for water restoration professionals. It stands for the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification. They are a non-profit organization that serves many countries including the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and Japan. They are also recognized as a knowledgeable resource for the cleaning and restoration industries.
Since they are a standard setting group it is always good to look for a water restoration company that is certified by the IICRC. If your water restoration company has the right to display the IICRC logo this means they have met the rigorous standards that are for them. If you visit the IICRC’s website page for benefits to consumers they list these standards as some of the criteria that an IICRC certified company must meet:
- Present accurate information to consumers and conduct business with honesty and integrity.
- Require a technician on all jobs who has been formally trained and passed all required tests.
- Require a continuing education program to keep technicians up-to-date on the latest changes in the industry.
- Maintain liability insurance to protect all parties in the event of an accident.
- Maintain a written complaint policy and agree to Better Business Bureau or similar arbitration to resolve disputes, and accept the conclusions and recommendation of arbitration.
Some regulatory groups just ask a company to pay a fee and then they are in. When it comes to water restoration this is not the case. The training is intense and then all supervisory technicians need continuing education for a company to stay certified.
As you can see with the standards set out by the IICRC it is unlikely that you will have a water restoration company in your home that doesn’t know what to do or how to do it. This is not to say that all water restoration companies are the same. It is best to shop around and get a few quotes when you have work done in your home, but making sure the companies you invite to do work in your home are IICRC certified is a good baseline for getting started.
