The Restoration and Construction Company

"This is Martin with The Restoration and Construction Company (RCC) responding. RCC did not have a contract with the complainant, [Member Name Removed] We did, however have a contract with her boyfriend, [Member Name Removed] As general contractors, we make an educated guess as to the time it will take to complete the project based on experience and funding. We never make promises because we know that jobs can be delayed for many reasons. On insurance jobs, the primary reason is lack of funding from the insurance company. We have to wait on payment. We had the insured pick out all the items the insurance company said they would replace for this loss, and then waited to get paid before buying them. The payment came very late. We do not finance these restoration jobs. Financing responsibility is on the insured, the insurance company, and the mortgage company, not the contractor. The insured was upset that the insurance company would not pay to remove and replace all the drywall in the home when the primary damage was a fire in the garage. We had to patch, and match the drywall and texture inside the home in only the areas the insurance company authorized payment for. We hired a seasoned, licensed subcontractor with many years of experience to perform this difficult task. Any prior damage such as holes, nails, or scratches were not addresses, as the insurance company didn't include them in the scope of work to be performed. The client was very unhappy about this and refused to understand that it was not our responsibility to correct previous defects, unless they wanted to pay us out of pocket to do so. During the course of the project we performed all the tasks allowed by the insurance company to remove the smoke damage from the home. We can only do what is authorized at the time by the adjuster. Several times we had to call the adjuster to ask for more work authorization because the smoke damage was more extensive that the adjuster thought. Once we had authorization, we would go further to attack the smoke damage. This happened several times on this project. Unfortunately, even though we thoroughly explained the delays and the causes of the delays, (the insurance authorization) the client wanted to blame us for these delays. Some clients refuse to accept the information given to them because it isn't what they want to hear. Unfortunately this client decided they wanted to keep their insurance money and refused to pay what is owed. It is a crime in California to profit from an insurance loss as an insured, its fraud. However, there are clients who view claims as an opportunity to profit huge with the insurance payout they receive. People praise softly, but complain loudly. It's one of the drawbacks of humanity."