5 Reasons to Streamline Your Salvage Valuation Process

Salvage valuation is a big part of the property restoration business — yet it’s often an afterthought, or worse, the source of errors, delays and complications. In the past, this important process has often been done manually, and piecemeal. But with today’s technology, businesses can now streamline the process to eliminate lost time and capture more job revenue, along with a few other benefits.

Why Streamline the Salvage Valuation Process?

Identifying and processing salvageable material is a key part of restoration work, providing a means to offset a site’s financial loss. Yet it’s also a cumbersome and sometimes contentious process, with the tendency to slow down, complicate and derail jobs. And that can cause extended claims processing time, which leads to late payments and frustrated customers (the kind not likely to offer referrals).

That’s changing today, with technology now available that can streamline and improve this important process in a way that directly benefits a restoration business’ bottom line. Just as with job management or customer and contact management, applying a tech-based solution to salvage valuation speeds up a complicated process, helps ensure the most accurate outcome, and promotes client satisfaction.

Think of the traditional ways that adjusters and contractors identify and process salvageable material at a job site. Now, consider the efficiency and accuracy that an automated, app-based tool can bring to every aspect of this process, giving field workers the power to:

  • Scan a site to automatically identify salvageable materials – including instant calculation of material weights without the need for additional measurements.
  • Get a fast and accurate salvage valuation of those materials, based on current market conditions, directly on their mobile device.
  • Easily find the closest salvage yard that accepts those materials, from a comprehensive database of more than 1,300 locations across the United States.
  • Leverage a shared reporting system that offers clear, concise information to simplify and speed up contractor negotiation while also enabling better decision-making.

5 Key Benefits of Streamlining Your Salvage Valuation Process

The ease of use described above is just the beginning. With each aspect of the salvage valuation process that’s streamlined and optimized, property restoration businesses can experience a series of additional knock-on benefits.

Benefit #1: Saved Time

The most immediate advantage of a streamlined process for salvage valuation is saved time — for workers, as well as for customers and the businesses working to serve them. Instant identification means shorter site visits. And with an instant cost-benefit analysis, workers can tell what value they’ll get for taking materials to a salvage yard, and whether it’s worth the trip.

Benefit #2: More Efficient Use of Labor

Streamlining the salvage valuation process with an automated, easy-to-use tool also empowers workers to get more done in less time. That gives business owners more value from their workforce, while helping to boost employee job satisfaction by making their jobs easier and more rewarding. And that can be a valuable benefit amid the ongoing labor shortage affecting the restoration industry.

Benefit #3: Increased Accuracy

In addition to being more efficient, automation is also more accurate than manual entry. As veterans of the restoration space know, the process of identifying salvageable materials isn’t just time-consuming, but prone to error. And those errors can cause real problems, in terms of job revenue, customer satisfaction and even company reputation. Automation removes much of the risk of human error from a complicated process.

Benefit #4: Maximized Revenue

With the ability to scan a site and automatically find materials worth salvaging, businesses can be sure that no money is being left on the table during a restoration job. Instant access to current market prices — and where to go to get them — also eliminates the need for on-site negotiation. That doesn’t just save time, but it helps to ensure that owners are receiving the best value for salvaged materials.

Benefit #5: Better Sustainability

Today’s customers tend to demand more sustainable, “green” services in the businesses they choose. Particularly in property restoration, where people are acutely aware of environmental concerns, offering a less wasteful process — one that saves paperwork, and eliminates the need for unnecessary travel — can be a big competitive advantage. And it can help businesses meet insurance policy holders’ expectations regarding sustainability, which is likely to offer additional financial advantages in the years to come.

Streamline Your Processes with Salvage in SettleAssist®

Manual salvage valuation is time-consuming, error prone and complicated — but it doesn’t have to be. Salvage in SettleAssist® from CoreLogic + Next Gear Solutions delivers all of the benefits described above in one convenient, easy-to-use tool. For property businesses looking to optimize their workflows and revenue streams, it’s a no-brainer — a way to reduce claims processing times while increasing salvage accuracy and consistency, all at once.

Ready to reduce claims processing times and increase consistency in your salvage scoping? Learn more about Salvage in SettleAssist® here, or schedule a demo today to take a closer look.

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