After a fire, you'll see two kinds of companies offering services: fire damage cleanup and fire damage restoration. They're not the same thing, and your insurance claim handles them differently.
Fire damage cleanup
Cleanup = removing visible damage. Charred items, smoke-stained surfaces, water from the fire department's suppression. Cheap, fast, and often inadequate for insurance to consider the job complete.
Fire damage restoration
Restoration = returning the property to pre-loss condition. Cleanup + structural drying + soot decontamination + odor neutralization + content cleaning + reconstruction of damaged areas + insurance documentation throughout.
Why insurance cares about the distinction
Florida insurance policies typically require restoration to industry-standard IICRC S700 procedures for the claim to be fully paid. Cleanup-only companies don't document to that standard, which means the carrier may only pay a fraction.
The hidden costs of cleanup-only
Soot is acidic — left on surfaces it corrodes metal and stains permanently within days. Smoke odor migrates into HVAC, insulation, and wall cavities. If the cleanup company doesn't address these, you'll discover them in 6-12 months and the claim will be closed.
Our recommendation
Make sure whoever you hire is doing restoration, not just cleanup. Ask for the IICRC S700 documentation up front. Our crew does this on every job because the documentation is what pays the claim.