What to do after a fire

After a disaster, it’s normal not to know where to start in order to repair the damages and get your life back to as normal as possible. Here’s what you can do.

What to do immediately after a fire 

If you are a homeowner :

• Call your insurance company.
• If you have insurance, it’s best to wait for your company to refer you to a disaster recovery expert. Hiring a cleaning expert on your own could result in a refusal of reimbursement.
• Retrieve your belongings by obtaining prior approval from the Laval Fire Department to return to the site.
• Find a place to stay temporarily, preferably with family or friends, or contact an organization for help.
• Inform your friends and family about the situation.
• Leave your contact information with the Laval Fire Department or the Canadian Red Cross.

If you are a tenant : 

• Call your insurance company.
• Inform the landlord about the fire and provide them with the contact details of where you will be staying temporarily.
• Retrieve your belongings by obtaining prior approval from the Laval Fire Department to return to the site.
• Find a place to stay temporarily, preferably with family or friends, or contact an organization for help.
• Inform your friends and family about the situation.

The role of your insurance company

Your insurance company must be informed as soon as possible. Their role is to :

• send someone to the site to assess the damage.
• begin the reimbursement procedures.
• provide support to fire victims. 

Remember that many insurance companies have an emergency phone number available 24 hours a day.

Post-disaster guide

To support the people of Laval through this difficult time, the City offers a comprehensive guide for those affected by disasters. This guide is intended for both homeowners and tenants, regardless of whether or not they have insurance.

This guide includes, among other things : 

• A list of actions to take in the days following a fire.
• A list of organizations that can assist disaster victims in Laval.
• A list of useful phone numbers.
• A guide to potential physical and psychological reactions of disaster victims, based on age and other factors.