This is kind of a random question, but I thought someone here might have some experience in this. Warning for the sqeamish: unpleasantly graphic subject matter ahead! Just stop here if you don't want to read it.

I have a friend whose family is dealing with the suicide of one of their sons. Unfortunately, he killed hmself in their home with a gun. After his body was removed, the room needed to be cleaned up.

They hired a company which was located several hours away in the biggest city near them. The company came out and spent two days cleaning the room. It was nothing out of the ordinary, just blood and tissue spatter as you would expect in this kind of situation.

I just found out that the company that cleaned up sent a bill for $19,000. Their homeowner's insurance paid $10,000 of it and said that is their limit, so now the family has to come up with an additional $9000.

Does anyone have any experience with this kind of thing? In the first place, I think this is an outrageous fee for 2 days of work, especially after all the other pain they've experienced. I told them they should ask for an itemized bill, just to see what they are being charged for. Is it cleanup materials, biohazard disposal fees, labor, what? I don't really understand how they can justify charging $19,000 to clean up one room. The dad of the family has said if he had known it would be so expensive, he would have just done it himself.

If you have any experience with this, can you tell me if this is normal? I don't think it should have been so much, but maybe there are things I don't know.

Did you try doing and internet search to see if you could find out any rate info?

HowStuffWorks "How Crime-scene Clean-up Works"

__________________
Insanity laughs under pressure we're cracking

Thanks for the link, afurrything. I read through it and in one place it says a room cleanup can run a few thousand.

"Cleaning up crime scenes isn't just a business -- it's a lucrative business. These companies charge anywhere from $100 to $600 an hour depending on the "degree of trauma" and the amount of hazardous or biohazardous material the cleaners have to handle and dispose of. Cleaning up a homicide in a single room with a lot of blood can run from $1,000 to $3,000. This service is often covered under auto, homeowner's or business insurance, and many crime-scene clean-up companies will handle the insurance paperwork for their clients"

I guess this was one of the companies that charges $600 an hour. Still, I don't see how they can justify it. I am mostly wondering if anyone has personal experience with this, either by working for this kind of business or knowing someone who does.

I had to clean up a bathroom after a young girl attempted suicide by cutting her wrists. I thought I would NEVER get all the blood cleaned up. When I thought I had it all, I would see more in the most unusual of places. I have had to clean down ambulances after major traumas.

I can't imagine cleaning a room that someone had shot themselves in the head. Blood and brain matter that have dried are difficult to clean even when "fresh", much less when they have dried.

These people are professionals, bonded and insured (and licensed in some states). It's not as simple as coming in and wiping down the walls. There is so much more involved. I do recommend an itemized statement.

__________________
Mental that one, I'm telling you. ---Ron Weasley, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets"

I do have an experience with using a similar company, but it was not the extensive cleaning that would have been required in your example. The price was much less, but I do not think it can be compared really. It was under $1000, but it was less than an hours work. I am not sure if there are different local code requirements for biohazard disposal or what could cause the price to be so high. Did they remove walls, flooring, etc? I would get an itemized bill, as that price would require 2 people to each get @$600 per hour for 16 hours total, that seems absurd.

There is supply fees, disposal fees (it's not like they can dump the stuff in the closest trash dumpster), and if they replaced anything that was beyond cleaning...

While it seems like a lot of money, I do see how it could be that much.

__________________
Mental that one, I'm telling you. ---Ron Weasley, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets"

I can not see how it is that much -- there is no way that medical wastse from one trauma costs that much-- I feel they are taking advantage of people at their lowest hour.

I have more experience than I ever wanted -- one of my son's best friends accidently shot himself in the neck and bled to death in their frat house -- I cleaned it up-- the 5 bathtowels - the hardwood floor - the glass door hehind him-- the puddles - the drips down two flights of thin victorian era steps -- I scrubbed and sobbed for hours -- no $19,000 is criminal

I agree that the bill seems very excessive. A call to the business manager is on order. I am thinking that a large charge of this nature is negotiable . Probably alot of people have no insurance at all to cover it. I would be suprised if the company is not used to writing off large portions of their bills. So sad for the family that they have to deal with this, too.

When family or friends do the clean up, it is cheap. But, when you bring an employer situation into the mix, OSHA rules and regs apply. There isn't a question that raises costs, but I find 19K absurd. I would review the contract and ask for an itemized bill.

A person could gut the room, rent a dumpster for the trash, and hire a construction crew to dry wall and carpet for 5K.

I would then get very vocal in the community about it. Perhaps require the police and coroner's office to offer resources for cleaning, rather than have families in shock get taken advantage of during the worst time of their lives.

Good idea, nightowlrn. I was so upset about this, I told my friend to have her dad call the local news.

Marilyn, I do see that it's more complicated/involved than one would originally think, with all the biohazard disposal and special equipment. But even considering all that, $19,000 still just seems like too much.

My gut tells me that they inflate the price and pad the bill, so that it can be negotiated down, as mailady said. And also -- there are some people who would just pay, with no questions asked, just to get it behind them.

Thanks for all your input, and my heart goes out to all of you who have had to clean up after this kind of tragedy. Obviously, you never forget it, and that should be something to consider in the value of hiring someone else to do it.

Definitely ask for the itemized bill. Something that DH mentioned...since the company that did the cleanup wasn't a local business they probably charged by the hour from the time they left their office until they returned. This could very well include overnight lodging, meal expense and mileage.
I'm still appalled.
I know a family that was in this situation 13 months ago. I don't know if they had a commercial service come in and do cleanup at all. I know they mentioned that some of their church members came in and cleaned. I also know that the young man covered (not sure with what) everything in the room prior to taking his life.

Perhaps they could one, contact their insurance provider and ask what is a normal charge for this service. Two, contact the state Attorney General to see if anyone there can help. I like the idea of contacting news sources as well. We have a local columnist here who writes interesting, but mostly non-judgmental columns about things like this, which can garner a lot of attention and often because of the attention, some sort of resolution.

I'm surprised to hear that insurance covers any of it. I guess I have not really needed that information, but it's nice to know. When my father died, many many years ago, there was a large mess, but I guess my brother just did it himself. I was out of town at the time and I've always felt guilty about not being there. He shouldn't have had to do the clean up, much less do it alone. This would have been a good answer for us both if it was even available back then.

[quote=GianninaJ;3429447] It was nothing out of the ordinary, just blood and tissue spatter as you would expect in this kind of situation.

/QUOTE]



Your friends should have, like any other purchase or decision, had an estimate in writing prior to the commencement of the clean up. I cannot help with cost, nor comment on whether the $10,000 homeowner insurance allowance would be fair and equitable, however I can comment on the scene from numerous personal experiences.

People don't think or realize the residual of a gun shot suicide is as you stated, "nothing out of the ordinary and as you would expect"..... until you have been in the room, seen the visual, smelled the smell(s), watched the bugs crawl, seen the maggots squirm, scrubbed until you could scrub no more, etc. - I don't think people have any realistic idea, this is something (fortunately) that not many people have to deal with.

As someone else stated, biohazardous waste/waste removal is highly regulated and it is NOT cheap, as well as a company being licensed, insured, providing personal protective equipment for their employees, and training. The red bags and specific identified containers as well as regulated haul and ultimate disposal factor in as well. Clean up may have involved cutting wall board/plaster out, as well as part of the floor or ceiling, and also big/heavy furniture.

It is a shame when someone does this in the house their family has to continue to live in.

dl