Scanner services in the Sacramento area?

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Kenpostudent00

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No, I work in the Fire and Water Restoration industry and I’m trying to find a local company who “Listens” and keeps the restorers of the industry up to date on the day by day happenings of the fire restoration community.
 

RolnCode3

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Some of us got emails and PMs a few years ago about working for a company that does this. I wanted nothing to do with it, but if I find their info I'll post it.
 

Kenpostudent00

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Thank you and believe me I understand not wanting to turn your hobby into “work” and I know well the view most people on this web site have about the people who work in my industry. Some of it is well deserved and some not so much.
I see the both the good and the bad out there 1st hand. On all sides of the fence. Both in the Private sector and the people who work for the municipalities. There is a Ying and Yang to all of this.
Personally I always try to make things better I often share information with the fire departments and help them get in touch with the RP (we often have better information than they do) and I personally secure 3 or 4 private residences or business a month that we know going into that it is a “Freebie” for the police departments in the cities in which we work. And believe me getting up at 3 am to secure some little old lady home after the police leave the crime scene or some liquor store they cant find the owner for is not my idea of a restful night, but it allows the police to continue to do their jobs instead of sitting in front of a broken window all night.
 

TrevDog

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I'm curious- is it just me, or does it sound like an "ambulance chaser" kinda gig going on? Isn't advertising for your business enough? Frankly, I would be a little upset if a restorer called me after I had a fire.
 

W8RMH

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No, I work in the Fire and Water Restoration industry and I’m trying to find a local company who “Listens” and keeps the restorers of the industry up to date on the day by day happenings of the fire restoration community.

You may want to consider an alert/paging/notification service like Alertpage Inc

Commercial Subscribers receive Custom alert types in addition to normal alerts. Very Popular with Restoration Companies, Public Adjusters, News Media Outlets, and Large Corporations.

Restoration Company
- Owner Demographics, Real Estate Information on Fire Losses, Detailed information on Damage.
.
 
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gmclam

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I'm curious- is it just me, or does it sound like an "ambulance chaser" kinda gig going on? Isn't advertising for your business enough? Frankly, I would be a little upset if a restorer called me after I had a fire.
Your assumptions are correct - they are "fire truck chasers". Seems like a lot of folks on here doing that in one form or another. That's why there's another thread looking for "listeners" in this area for business purposes.
 

Kenpostudent00

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We are getting a little off Thread here but this from my point of view requires a response. If I posted this in the wrong thread to start with I humbly apologize and I hope the moderator will move it to the right category. And in response to the other posters thank you for your responses, even the one questioning the basic business model under which I work. This is often the 1st response to my entire industry and sadly at times well deserved. As I have alluded to in an earlier post I see it all the good and the bad of what happens both during and after a fire. I see the good things the police, Fire and EMS responders, the insurance company’s and the people in my field of expertise do and yes I see the bad. And believe me after 15 years I can tell stories that go both ways.
I my field and yours (I willing to bet) there are both honorable people and those less so. I strive to change this on a daily basis and behave in ways that leave a changed mind after people talk to me. Most of the time I simply introduce myself to the BC on scene and ask if the people need help would he mind pointing me out. We are also venders for most insurance companies and many property management companies
The company I work for has been in business for over 50 years and completed 65,000 fire, water and building trauma restorations and we do not even so much as have 1 complaint on file at the contractors license board.
I am proud of what I do and the people I work for and they are one of the good guys.
 

TrevDog

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We are getting a little off Thread here but this from my point of view requires a response. If I posted this in the wrong thread to start with I humbly apologize and I hope the moderator will move it to the right category. And in response to the other posters thank you for your responses, even the one questioning the basic business model under which I work. This is often the 1st response to my entire industry and sadly at times well deserved. As I have alluded to in an earlier post I see it all the good and the bad of what happens both during and after a fire. I see the good things the police, Fire and EMS responders, the insurance company’s and the people in my field of expertise do and yes I see the bad. And believe me after 15 years I can tell stories that go both ways.
I my field and yours (I willing to bet) there are both honorable people and those less so. I strive to change this on a daily basis and behave in ways that leave a changed mind after people talk to me. Most of the time I simply introduce myself to the BC on scene and ask if the people need help would he mind pointing me out. We are also venders for most insurance companies and many property management companies
The company I work for has been in business for over 50 years and completed 65,000 fire, water and building trauma restorations and we do not even so much as have 1 complaint on file at the contractors license board.
I am proud of what I do and the people I work for and they are one of the good guys.

I stand by my opinion of disliking your business model just out of principle. However, I respect your response ad I can't argue with the track record provided. I apologize if I came across as rude in my first post.
 

Kenpostudent00

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No worries I understand completely. I don't trust my auto mechanic either and alway ask for a second opinion pretty much no mater what he recommends and don't even start me on my dentist!!!
 

SCPD

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I would be angered (to say the least) if a company showed up unsolicited if something happened to my home. Business should not be allowed to come to my home whether that be door to door or on the phone. If a fire restoration company arrived at my home during or shortly after a fire I would file as many complaints as possible. It is no different than having an unsolicited tow truck or attorney show up if I was in an automobile accident.

Fire restoration companies should work the same way tow services work with most law enforcement agencies, on call per rotation. If my car becomes disabled I have the choice of who is going to tow my car and if one showed up without a request I would tell them to leave, no exceptions. I would be tempted to verbally assault them and chase them from the scene. If a tow company arrived on scene without being called they find themselves removed from the rotation list for a period of time, measured in months.

If my home is damaged by fire or water, I would call my insurance company first. I have a local agent that I have known for 25 years and his father before that. I would want him to give me several companies from which to choose, similar to having my car repaired after an accident. If a restoration company showed up unsolicited not only would I file a complaint, I would also write a letter to the editor of the local paper objectively stating what transposed and I would relate the experience to anyone who asked what I went though. In the lightly populated two county region I live in having a few of those incidents would have an adverse effect. I've seen it happen to other businesses who have operated with ethics many would question.

The public became quite aggravated with telemarketing and Congress passed an act to prohibit them. Now some companies are basing their operations outside the U.S. and are getting away with it. I think the use of U.S. phone lines no matter the location of the calling point should be prohibited. People are tired of commercials on TV using much higher audio than the show itself, now next month a law passed by the U.S. Congress will prohibit same. You may not be getting objective feedback and a backlash against "your business model" may actually be occurring, to what degree I don't know. The private sector take the position that they can't operate with the regulation atmosphere they operate in. By taking such a position they should conduct business in a manner that regulation is unnecessary.

I'm not being rude here, I'm just conveying my thoughts on the situation and giving you honest feedback. I consider the method of hearing a report of a damaged home and using that report to arrive on scene to solicit services to be sleazy. Amateur radio prohibits anyone making money, whether for profit or not, from use of a ham radio. I wish scanner owners would adhere to the same. The use of scanners under the circumstances you outlined is just one more thing that casts a poor light on the hobby.
 

gmclam

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I would be angered (to say the least) if a company showed up unsolicited if something happened to my home
I agree with this mindset. Companies that operate in that manner appear "desparate" for business and would not be considered.
 

swest90

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Exsmokey and gmclam, Then you would end up with the short end of the stick. You are looking at this from one very narrow mindset, take a second, step back and bring some thought into it.


So say its about 0200 in the morning last night, the night after Thanksgiving, you have an unforunate accident at your home and have a loss whether fire or water. The local department comes and does a good job of getting getting the incident quickly contained, however there is still a moderate to large extent of damage. The department has cut at least one or two squares in the roof and several windows are completely broken out for ventalation, the front or back door is unsecured due to damage or forced entry. There is also a substantial amount of water on a significant portion of your property and contents in the affected areas.

What happens if you are away? Ive seem plenty of instances where the fire department, or city can't reach the owner or tenant, if the city doesn't do their own boardups, which many don't, the city will either hire one of those companies outside, leave your home unsecured, or very rarely (but depends on the city) have the city works do it in the morning. I would prefer to have my remaining possesions safeguarded immediately.

Now lets switch it up, what happens if you are home. The redcross may come to assist you if you need a motel room for a night or two and give you a few vouchers for food and clothing. They are great at getting you out of the cold and getting your immediate shelter needs taken care of, but you have a much longer road ahead of you and you must consider that. While you are waiting for shelter in the cold, are you going to go through the neighbors phone book looking for these same companies you are complaining about to come and secure your property? Wouldn't you like to at least speak face to face with the person you are handing some responsibility of your home over?

If a fire restoration company arrived at my home during or shortly after a fire I would file as many complaints as possible.

File complaints with whom exactly? You live in a free country if you haven't forgotten. Which part of the civil or penal code are you going to be reffering to? If you don't want their assistance you can ask them to leave, I doubt they are going to hang around after being informed you dont want assistance in getting your property back up to shape. Only if they are tresspassing on your property, harrassing, or breaking a law you would you have any valid complaint. If they wanted to assemble off your property they are free to do so, as protected by the First Amendment of the consitution.


Fire restoration companies should work the same way tow services work with most law enforcement agencies, on call per rotation. If my car becomes disabled I have the choice of who is going to tow my car and if one showed up without a request I would tell them to leave, no exceptions.

NO, it should not work the same way tow companies operate. If someone is doing work on my house, I do NOT want the city/state determining who is going to work on MY property (this is not China). I own my house and am capable of making my own decisions. And hey if you like standing by the road side waiting for tows, what ever floats your boat.



If my home is damaged by fire or water, I would call my insurance company first. I have a local agent that I have known for 25 years and his father before that. I would want him to give me several companies from which to choose

And no one is preventing you from doing that. Just remember no matter how long you've known your agent, they are not going to be one that decides on your claim anyway, some company adjuster sitting in an office probably several states away are the ones doing the balance sheets. Insurance is a business, most likely a publically held corporation that has its interestes in its margins and return on investment for its shareholders, not its individual clients needs. And like anything else if you dont do your due dilligence you are likely to suffer from widely known problems that you could have avoided. You should always get a second or third opinion before accepting any claim whether it be your auto or your home. That is the job the Public Adjuster, the insurance company will be quick to add up the big items for you since those will be on your mind, but what about all your other and minor items that end up with a lot more value then just the big tv and bed set you are thinking about.

My step father was a public adjuster for several years when i grew up, thats how I know about this industry. I went to sevearl fires as a child, and watched from the day after destruction to the months after when the families were joyed when everything was newly rebuilt and they were ready to get back in. I also was quite amazed even at 10-12 years old, how the loss amounts were very often so underestimated by the insurance carriers. I would watch my stepdad meticiously go through the contents of the burned structure, find their value, put them in excel sheets and confront the insurance companies to get his clients real value for their property from what they had been paying for in monthly payments to the insurace company for years or decades.



I agree with this mindset. Companies that operate in that manner appear "desparate" for business and would not be considered.

So you would go with the company that showed you they didn't even have the enthusiasm or energy to even drive to the scene? Great thinking there..

Shawn
 

JoeyC

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Businesses such as this are best left as referrals from the fire department (if they so chose to do that) or the insurance company. Anyone showing up at the scene of a disaster without being called is suspect to me. What if I don't want your services or have someone else in mind? I hate being approached by salesmen and the like especially under stress at such an emotional time. If I need your services, I will contact you. You can be available at all hours of the night - just don't be a fire truck chaser, as that is just a little too pushy at a vulnerable time for a victim of fire.
 

socalradioguy

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Businesses such as this are best left as referrals from the fire department (if they so chose to do that) or the insurance company. Anyone showing up at the scene of a disaster without being called is suspect to me. What if I don't want your services or have someone else in mind? I hate being approached by salesmen and the like especially under stress at such an emotional time. If I need your services, I will contact you. You can be available at all hours of the night - just don't be a fire truck chaser, as that is just a little too pushy at a vulnerable time for a victim of fire.

I'm sorry, JoeyC, but I think you're mistaken. I've been listening to the fire service for years and years, and I can't tell you how many times in the middle of the night I've heard fire departments call dispatch after a fire has been knocked down, or they've removed a vehicle from a structure, etc. and request a board-up company to secure the location. They usually don't give them a lot of time, either, since usually they are in mop-up mode by then, and will have to depart shortly afterward to be available for the next call. In some cases dispatch is able to find a company to respond, but in most cases fire ends up bugging dispatch a _minimum_ of 5 times requesting an ETA for the board-up company. And if you think getting ahold of a board-up company in the middle of the night is tough, try finding a good number to get ahold of someone responsible for the structure at that hour!

Scanner services provide a valuable service in that they can direct not only public adjusters, but board-up companies and restoration services as well to the scene of an incident...usually within MINUTES of when fire personnel confirm a working incident. Not only does this help the owner of the property keep what's left of their structure and belongings secure, it also allows the fire and police personnel on-scene to deal with the need on-scene without having to bug dispatch over and over again, saves dispatch the need of calling a bunch of numbers that they may or may not get an answer from when they could (and should) be dealing with radio calls - not leaving voicemails at 3AM, and minimizes the time that fire and police are just waiting around for someone to come secure a structure. Or, as Shawn mentioned, in some cases where they can't contact a board-up company, they _do_ leave the structure unsecured until sometime the next morning...and it's times like that you hope that would-be thieves aren't monitoring the fire channels since you know PD didn't leave someone behind just to watch the structure. Not to mention a problem with inclement weather like heavy rain or the like.

Yeah, I used to think of the public adjusters and board-up/restoration companies that showed up at fires as a nuisance for the home owners and such to deal with...but after years of listening to what happens when they aren't involved, I've changed my mind about them. It's also worth it to note that they usually pay a decent amount of money each month to the aforementioned scanner services (especially the good ones) for the privilege of receiving detailed information on each incident that occurs in a given area. I imagine they couldn't afford to do that unless they were getting a decent return on that investment, which probably means that most people are happy to see them...and don't just send them packing.
 

burner50

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I think this thread has run its course.

I'm closing this thread.
 
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