How to best handle insurance claim for flooding (cracked pipe)?

[Martin Cozzi]

Hi,

I found out that last night a pipe broke in the bathroom of my house while I was traveling out of the country. A friend happened to stop by to check on the house and saw water coming out from every wall of the house.

He called me right away, I called the insurance company (state farm), opened a claim, and contacted a local 24/7 restoration company who sent a team within 90 minutes. They say that the pipe had only been broken for 2-3 hours before my friends arrived. There was about 1" of water across the entire house. The water has been shut off and the immediate flooding mitigated by installing dehumidifiers and fans. I am now flying home.

We just finished redoing the drywall, paint, and flooring across 80% of the house, so this is a major bummer, but I want to look past this and be as ready as possible for the insurance claim. 

Those of you who are familiar with the topic, or have gone through this in the past, do you have any recommendation to make sure that the insurance covers as much of the damage as possible? What immediate action should I take? I've read that hiring a private insurance adjuster can be a good idea, and that I should ask the insurance to provide for housing/hotel, as well as keep all receipts for eating out since we don't have a kitchen anymore.

Any info & advice will be greatly appreciated!

Thanks everyone.

Martin