After Fire stock clearance
Hi
I have had a major fire and have been investigated by a multitude of people
- Fire
- Police
- Insurance
- Health Department
The questions are who give the final clearance for smoke and water damage after a fire? Who has the final say on what stock should be thrown out due to smoke and water damage.
Insurers have there line in the sand Local government (health)another and the export people are yet to be involved?
Any help appreciated product is dried fruit
Harey
Well my gut tells me with the words "major fire" that probably 90% of your raw material, packaging, and finished good may be contaminated some how. Whether it be smoke, water, soot, smell or what have you. The answer may be inbetween but put yourself in the customer shoes, what would you accept?
G
I should think that the insurance company made some kind of call as to loss percentages....that being said QA should have a vital role in determining what is acceptable to use. Hopefully senior management will not over ride that.
When I dealt with a fire in North Carolina, the health department embargoed most of the food and then watched as we destroyed it in a compactor. Thankfully, the insurance company and senior management didn't have much authority in the matter.
Let us know how you made out. I would hope that the insurance company will allow your QA department to dispose of additional product that the health department thought was ok but they didn't.
Hi
I have had a major fire and have been investigated by a multitude of people
- Fire
- Police
- Insurance
- Health Department
The questions are who give the final clearance for smoke and water damage after a fire? Who has the final say on what stock should be thrown out due to smoke and water damage.
Insurers have there line in the sand Local government (health)another and the export people are yet to be involved?
Any help appreciated product is dried fruit
Harey
What does your process say? Our is written that the President and Quality Coordinator can release product after a disaster. However we don't actually produce or package food in our facility. We make packaging (plastic)
I think insurance company will make some call to loss percentages.
Just keep in mind, the insurance company will have its own agenda and has no say in what SQF or BRC might view as a risk. It is best to let the agency's decide what they need to and you as QA have final say which would likely be above their limit. Anything you keep you need to do a risk analysis / hazard analysis on and be prepared to explain your answer to those certification bodies during an audit.
In other words, let all the red tape play out as it may, then step back and do a full assessment of the product(s) and potential risk and harm. Ultimately it will be your responsibility if you are not compliant with your policy and customer expectations.