How is a house cleaned after an unattended death?
After an unattended death, a house is cleaned by a specialist team rather than an ordinary cleaner, because decomposition leaves biological contamination and a deep odour that normal cleaning cannot make safe. The work removes anything the fluids have reached, decontaminates every affected surface to a clinical standard, and treats the smell at source, which is what professional unattended death cleaning sets out to do.
Why can a house not be cleaned normally after an unattended death?
A house cannot be cleaned normally after an unattended death because decomposition releases fluids, gases and bacteria that soak into soft furnishings, flooring and even the subfloor, carrying a genuine infection risk. Ordinary household cleaning moves that contamination around rather than removing it, and it cannot shift the deep odour, so the property is not actually safe until it has been decontaminated to a clinical standard.
What does cleaning a house after an unattended death involve?
Cleaning a house after an unattended death involves containing the affected area, removing everything the decomposition fluid has reached, and decontaminating the structure beneath. Technicians work in full protective equipment, strip out contaminated carpet, flooring and furniture, then clean, disinfect and decontaminate the surfaces that remain, treating the air and fabric of the room to remove the odour at its source rather than masking it. All the contaminated material is taken away as clinical waste under licence.
What can be saved and what has to be removed?
What can be saved depends on how porous an item is and how far the contamination has spread. Hard, non-porous surfaces such as sealed floors, tiles and metal can usually be cleaned and kept, while porous items the fluids have reached, carpet, underlay, mattresses, upholstered furniture and sometimes floorboards or plaster, normally have to be removed and disposed of. A specialist assesses each item, keeps what can be safely decontaminated, and documents anything taken away.
How long does it take, and who pays?
Most domestic unattended death cleans take from a day to a few days, depending on how long the death went undiscovered and how far the contamination spread. The cost is often met by buildings insurance, and a specialist can liaise with the insurer and bill the claim directly, so the family is not usually left out of pocket.
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