Cleanup services
Six kinds of work, one thing in common: no public agency we have found in Texas offers to do any of them. Here is what each involves, and what companies advertise for it — no Texas authority publishes a price.
Start from what happened
- Someone died at home and was not found for days Unattended Death Cleanup · advertised $1,500 – $20,000+
- A violent crime, and the police have finished Crime Scene Cleanup · advertised $1,500 – $9,000
- A suicide or a serious accident in the property Trauma & Suicide Cleanup · advertised $1,500 – $9,000
- Blood or bodily fluid from an injury or a medical event Biohazard Cleanup · advertised $500 – $20,000+
- A property filled to the point it cannot be cleaned normally Hoarding Cleanup · advertised $2,500 – $15,000+
- A smell that keeps coming back after a clean Death & Biohazard Odor Removal · no advertised range
What is true of all of them
Nobody official cleans it
Police, fire departments, medical examiners and justices of the peace all finish their work and leave. The cleanup falls to whoever owns the property or the next of kin.
Texas licenses none of it
There is no state license for biohazard, crime scene or trauma cleanup. Judge a company on insurance, bloodborne-pathogens training and where it takes the waste instead.
The price needs an on-site look
Every range on this site is a range. What decides the number is how much porous material absorbed fluid, and nobody can see that down a phone.
Removal and restoration are two jobs
Taking out contaminated flooring is cleanup. Putting a new floor in is restoration, and it is usually quoted separately.
All six services
Biohazard Cleanup
Removal and disinfection of blood, bodily fluids and other biological hazards.
Advertised range $500 – $20,000+
Crime Scene Cleanup
Discreet cleanup after violent crimes once police release the scene.
Advertised range $1,500 – $9,000
Unattended Death Cleanup
Decomposition cleanup, odor removal and restoration after an unattended death.
Advertised range $1,500 – $20,000+
Trauma & Suicide Cleanup
Compassionate cleanup after a suicide, accident or serious injury.
Advertised range $1,500 – $9,000
Hoarding Cleanup
Sorting, removal and sanitizing of hoarded or unsanitary homes.
Advertised range $2,500 – $15,000+
Death & Biohazard Odor Removal
Professional deodorization after decomposition, sewage or biohazard events.
Advertised range Not published
Each of the 7 cities on this network has its own page for every service, with that county's release process, the local offices and the rules that apply there. Find your city.
Standards these pages rely on
- Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation — licensed programs — no cleanup license exists in Texas
- OSHA 29 CFR 1910.1030 — Bloodborne Pathogens
- TCEQ — medical waste transporter registration
What applies to every service
Does insurance cover it?
Some homeowners and renters policies cover biological contamination remediation after a covered event and some exclude it, and an insurer generally wants an itemized invoice from a contractor. Ask your own insurer whether it pays a contractor directly or reimburses you, and whether restoration is covered as well as the cleanup. After a violent crime the Texas Crime Victims’ Compensation Program (Office of the Attorney General) may reimburse up to $2,250 toward cleanup, after your insurance rather than before it.
Who is responsible for the cleanup?
In most cases the property owner or the family. Police, fire departments and the medical examiner do not clean the scene after they finish their work.