Franchise Facts Report → brands → 1-800 Water Damage
1-800 Water Damage franchise — is it worth it?
Risk level — in the report
1-800 WATER DAMAGE is a cleaning and restoration franchise with a moderate initial investment.
Unlock what the free page above only hints at:
- The actual Item 19 earnings — reported average unit revenue, not just “disclosed.”
- How it compares — every number ranked against cleaning & restoration peers (median & quartile).
- Litigation detail — beyond the case count above: each case, franchisee vs. corporate, with summaries.
- Outlet churn & the questions to ask — behind the net change above: closures, terminations, transfers, and what to put to the franchisor.
Figures above are as disclosed in 1-800 Water Damage's most recent FDD (registered 2024). Source: California Dept. of Financial Protection and Innovation — Franchise Registration · filing app-27363. The risk level, the Item 19 figures, how it compares to peers, and the litigation & churn detail are in the full report.
How much does a 1-800 Water Damage franchise make?
1-800 Water Damage is one of the franchisors that answers this on the record: its most recent FDD makes an Item 19 financial performance representation — actual unit earnings figures, disclosed by the franchisor itself. The average revenue 1-800 Water Damage reports, what that figure does and doesn't include, and where it ranks against cleaning & restoration peers are in the full report. See every cleaning & restoration brand that discloses earnings in the Cleaning & restoration franchises with disclosed Item 19 earnings ranking.
1-800 Water Damage franchise profit vs. revenue
Revenue is not profit. An Item 19 almost always reports sales — what a location takes in — not what an owner keeps. Out of that number come 1-800 Water Damage's 9% royalty, the ad fund, rent, payroll, supplies and debt service. No FDD tells you a 1-800 Water Damage franchise's profit, because profit depends on your site, your rent and how you run it — so treat any "1-800 Water Damage franchise profit" figure quoted elsewhere as someone's estimate, not a disclosure. The full report sets 1-800 Water Damage's disclosed revenue against its total ongoing fee load, so you can see what that revenue has to cover before anything reaches you.
1-800 Water Damage lawsuits & legal history (FDD Item 3)
1-800 Water Damage's most recently filed Franchise Disclosure Document (2024) does disclose legal proceedings in Item 3 . Item 3 is the item where a franchisor must put its material legal history on the record. Two things it is not: it covers the franchisor and its predecessors, parents and affiliates, so a disclosed case is not necessarily a suit against 1-800 Water Damage itself; and a disclosure is a fact, not a finding of wrongdoing — most entries are contract disputes with former franchisees, which every large system accumulates. The full 1-800 Water Damage report lists each case with what it was about and how it ended, separates franchisee disputes from corporate and securities matters, and flags the ones a franchisee started — the split that actually matters, because franchisees suing their franchisor is the signal a buyer is looking for.
1-800 Water Damage closures & failure rate
Before you sign, 1-800 Water Damage will hand you a list of current owners to call as references — and they choose who's on that list. It won't include the owners who quit, got bought out, or were forced out last year. The FDD does report that number, even though the reference list leaves those people off. Below is what 1-800 Water Damage's most recent filing shows, and whether it's normal for a cleaning & restoration of this kind.
The closest thing an FDD has to a failure rate is Item 20 — outlet openings, closures, terminations and non-renewals, reported by the franchisor. 1-800 Water Damage's latest tables show a growing franchised network. The actual closure and termination counts, and how 1-800 Water Damage's churn ranks against cleaning & restoration peers, are in the full report.
The actual Item 19 earnings, every figure ranked against cleaning & restoration peers, litigation and churn detail — emailed as a PDF.
Who owns 1-800 Water Damage?
1-800 Water Damage's franchise is offered by 1-800 WATER DAMAGE International LLC — the franchisor named on the cover of its most recently filed Franchise Disclosure Document (2024), and the entity a franchisee actually signs with. That name comes straight off the filing at CA DFPI; it identifies the franchisor, not necessarily the ultimate parent company behind it.
Cleaning & restoration franchises at a similar investment level
Anyone weighing 1-800 Water Damage is really weighing it against the other brands their money could go into. These are the closest by total initial investment (FDD Item 7), each with its own FDD-based page.
1-800 Water Damage franchise — frequently asked
Who owns 1-800 Water Damage — who is the franchisor?
1-800 Water Damage's most recently filed FDD (2024) names 1-800 WATER DAMAGE International LLC as the franchisor — the entity you would actually sign the franchise agreement with, as stated on the disclosure document itself. A registry filing names the franchisor, not necessarily its ultimate parent company.
How much does a 1-800 Water Damage franchise cost?
1-800 Water Damage's most recently filed FDD (Item 7) puts the total estimated initial investment at $170,089 – $294,984, with an initial franchise fee of $59,000 and a 9% royalty. That price is the franchisor's own estimate of what it takes to open, not a quote. The full report breaks down every fee line and benchmarks it against cleaning & restoration peers.
How much profit does a 1-800 Water Damage franchise make?
1-800 Water Damage discloses unit earnings in Item 19, but that figure is revenue — sales — not profit. Royalties (9% of gross for 1-800 Water Damage), the ad fund, rent, payroll and supplies all come out of it, and no FDD discloses what an owner nets. Any 1-800 Water Damage franchise profit number quoted elsewhere is an estimate. The full report shows the disclosed revenue against the full ongoing fee load it has to cover.
Does 1-800 Water Damage disclose financial performance (Item 19)?
Yes — 1-800 Water Damage reports unit-level earnings in Item 19. The full report shows the actual revenue figures and how they rank against cleaning & restoration peers.
Are there lawsuits against 1-800 Water Damage?
1-800 Water Damage's most recently filed FDD (2024) discloses legal proceedings in Item 3. Item 3 covers the franchisor, its predecessors, parents and affiliates — so a disclosed case is not necessarily a suit against 1-800 Water Damage itself, and a disclosure is not a finding of wrongdoing. The full report lists each case, separates franchisee disputes from corporate and securities matters, and flags the franchisee-initiated ones.
Is 1-800 Water Damage a good franchise to buy?
That comes down to how 1-800 Water Damage's investment, earnings, litigation and franchisee churn stack up against cleaning & restoration peers — which is exactly what the full report answers. For $99 you get the risk level and what's driving it, the actual Item 19 earnings (disclosed in this FDD), where every figure ranks against peers, and the specific questions to ask the franchisor before you sign.
Everything the sections above point to, in one place: 1-800 Water Damage's risk level and what's driving it, the actual Item 19 earnings, every figure ranked against cleaning & restoration peers, and the litigation & churn detail — with the questions to put to the franchisor before you sign.
Get a free email when something changes on 1-800 Water Damage or cleaning & restoration: a new FDD registration, a new lawsuit, an outlet count that shifts, or Item 19 earnings going from undisclosed to disclosed. Pulled straight from the same registries every report is built on.