Insurance & Restoration Glossary
Plain-English definitions of the terms you'll hear during a fire, water, storm, or mold claim.
Insurance and restoration claims come with their own vocabulary. Below are plain-English definitions of the terms homeowners, adjusters, and contractors most often run into during a fire, water, storm, or mold claim.
Actual Cash Value (ACV)
What an item is worth today, accounting for depreciation — the replacement cost minus wear and age. Many policies pay ACV first, with the remainder paid once repairs or replacement are complete.
Replacement Cost Value (RCV)
What it costs to replace an item today with a new one of similar kind and quality, without subtracting for age or wear. Policies with RCV coverage typically pay the depreciated amount first, then the rest after the work is done.
Contents Coverage
The part of a homeowners or commercial policy that covers personal belongings — furniture, electronics, clothing, and other contents — separate from the coverage for the structure itself.
Non-Salvage / Non-Salvageable
An item damaged beyond reasonable repair or restoration. Non-salvageable items are documented with photos and notes and provided to the insurance company as part of the claim.
Pack-Out
The process of inventorying, protecting, and removing a home or business's contents so a restoration contractor can begin structural drying and repair without belongings in the way.
Packback
The final stage of contents restoration — returning cleaned and restored belongings to a repaired home or business and placing them back in their original locations.
Public Adjuster
An independent claims professional hired by a policyholder (not the insurance company) to help document, value, and negotiate an insurance claim on the homeowner's behalf.
Scope of Loss
The insurance company's official description of what was damaged and what work is approved to address it — the basis for what gets covered and paid.
Deductible
The amount a policyholder pays out of pocket before insurance coverage kicks in on a claim.
Mitigation
Steps taken immediately after a loss to prevent further damage — like shutting off water, tarping a roof, or removing contents from an affected area.
Climate-Controlled Storage
Storage space with regulated temperature and humidity, used to protect fire- or water-affected contents from further damage — like mold growth or warping — while a home is repaired.
Subrogation
The process by which an insurance company seeks reimbursement from a third party responsible for a loss — for example, a neighbor whose pipe burst and damaged an adjoining unit.