What the Disaster Recovery Platform Includes

The $550 platform fee is a one-time payment to Disaster Recovery that activates the full platform service. It is not a “booking fee” or a “service charge” that disappears into overhead — it funds specific, tangible services that directly support your restoration:

• Claim lodgement — You submit your damage details, location, and photos through the online claim form at disasterrecovery.com.au/claim. The platform processes your claim immediately — no phone queues, no business-hours-only service desk, no waiting for a callback.
• Instant contractor matching — The platform matches you with the nearest available IICRC-certified contractor within your selected radius (20 to 100 km). Matching happens automatically based on your location, damage type, and contractor availability. You receive confirmation within minutes, with a 60-minute emergency response target.
• Documentation support — Throughout the restoration, the platform coordinates documentation standards with your contractor. This ensures you receive professional-grade claims documentation — not just a few photos and an invoice, but the full evidence package your insurer requires.
• Case coordination — The platform maintains oversight of your claim from lodgement through to completion. If issues arise, if additional resources are needed, or if the scope changes, the platform coordinates between you and your contractor.

The platform fee is the same regardless of when you lodge — no after-hours surcharges, no weekend premiums, no public holiday markups. Emergencies do not have business hours, and neither does our pricing.

The $2,200 contractor credit goes directly to your matched IICRC-certified contractor. It covers the critical first phase of any disaster restoration:

• Emergency make-safe — Securing the property against further damage. Depending on the event, this may include water extraction, emergency board-up, tarping damaged roofing, isolating electrical hazards, or establishing containment zones for contamination. Make-safe stops the damage from getting worse while the full assessment is completed.
• Initial damage assessment — A thorough evaluation of the damage using professional equipment — moisture meters, thermal imaging cameras, hygrometers, and visual inspection. The assessment identifies the full extent of damage, including concealed damage behind walls, under floors, and in ceiling cavities that is not visible to the eye.
• Commencement of urgent works — Depending on the damage type, this may include deploying drying equipment (dehumidifiers, air movers), applying antimicrobial treatments, beginning soot and smoke residue removal, or establishing HEPA-filtered containment for mould remediation. These are time-critical interventions that reduce secondary damage and total restoration cost.

The contractor credit is applied to the first $2,200 of restoration work. Your contractor does not charge an additional callout fee or assessment fee on top of this credit — it covers attendance, assessment, and emergency works in a single amount.

The $2,750 total initial commitment ($550 platform fee + $2,200 contractor credit) covers the emergency phase. For minor incidents, this may be sufficient. For larger or more complex damage, additional works will be required. Here is exactly how the transition works:

1. Emergency phase completes — Your contractor finishes make-safe, completes the damage assessment, and begins urgent interventions. You receive a detailed report of findings, including photographs, moisture readings, and a description of all damage identified — visible and concealed.
2. Formal contract provided — After make-safe, your contractor provides a formal contract with full terms and conditions. This is not a vague estimate — it is a detailed scope of works with line-item pricing for every task: demolition, drying, decontamination, contents handling, rebuild, and any specialist services required.
3. You review and approve — You see exactly what work is proposed, what it costs, and why it is needed. You can ask questions, request changes, or get a second opinion. No additional work proceeds without your written approval.
4. Restoration proceeds — Once approved, the full restoration continues with daily monitoring, ongoing documentation, and regular progress updates. Your contractor manages the project from drying through to rebuild completion.
5. Final documentation delivered — At project completion, you receive the complete documentation package: before and after photographs, moisture logs, air quality results (where applicable), scope of works, daily reports, and final invoicing. This package supports your insurance reimbursement claim for the full restoration cost.

Documentation is not an afterthought — it is a core deliverable of the Disaster Recovery platform. The documentation your contractor provides serves two critical purposes: it confirms the restoration was completed to IICRC standards, and it gives your insurer everything they need to process your reimbursement.

Your documentation package includes:

• Photographic evidence — Before, during, and after photographs of all affected areas. These are dated and captioned, showing the initial damage, the restoration process, and the completed result.
• Moisture readings and logs — Daily moisture meter readings showing the drying progress for each affected material and area. These readings demonstrate that the structure was dried to its dry standard — the objective measure that drying is complete.
• Thermal imaging reports — Where thermal imaging was used to identify concealed damage, the images and interpretation are included. These are powerful evidence for insurance claims because they show damage that is invisible to the naked eye.
• Scope of works — A detailed document listing every task performed, materials used, equipment deployed, and the rationale for each. This is the primary document your insurer uses to verify the claim is reasonable and necessary.
• Air quality reports — Where mould remediation or contamination was involved, air quality testing results (pre-remediation and post-remediation) confirm the property meets safe occupancy standards.
• Contents inventory — If pack-out was required, a detailed inventory of all items removed, their condition, storage location, and cleaning or disposal outcomes.
• Daily progress reports — A record of work completed each day, equipment in place, readings taken, and any issues or scope changes identified.

Full claims documentation is provided as a standard part of the service — not as an optional extra.

We bill you directly — the property owner. This is a deliberate choice that benefits you in several important ways:

• Work begins immediately — Because we do not wait for insurer approval, your emergency response starts as soon as a contractor is matched. No scope disputes, no assessor visits, no weeks of delay while your property continues to deteriorate.
• You control the process — You choose when work starts, you approve the scope, and you decide how the restoration proceeds. There is no insurer-appointed project manager making decisions about your property.
• Full reimbursement support — The comprehensive claims documentation we provide gives your insurer everything they need to process your reimbursement. You are not left trying to piece together evidence after the fact.

Payment structure:

• $550 platform fee — paid at claim lodgement
• $2,200 contractor credit — paid at claim lodgement
• Additional works — as quoted in the formal contract, invoiced as work progresses

If you need to manage cash flow while waiting for your insurance reimbursement, payment plans are available through Blue Fire Finance. Blue Fire Finance offers flexible terms that can bridge the gap between paying your contractor and receiving funds from your insurer.

Many property owners use finance because insurance reimbursement timelines vary from 2 weeks to several months depending on the insurer, claim complexity, and documentation completeness. Our documentation is designed to minimise processing time, but finance provides certainty regardless of insurer timelines.