Where the rescue happened
Describe the access point, water conditions, and work on scene. Use the location map and coordinate override when an address alone doesn’t identify the rescue site.
Water rescue billing for fire departments
Water rescue billing.
Tell us what it took.
Record the rescue location, crew time, and boat and insurance details. Onsite reviews the records, prepares the bill, and follows up with the insurance company.
Water Rescue Claim
Form Type: WR - Water IncidentsIncident Information
- Location
- 100 Lake Road
- Incident Narrative
- Four rescue personnel responded to a disabled boat near the Sunnydale boat launch. Crews established a shore perimeter, made patient contact, and assisted the occupants to shore. Personnel remained on scene for two hours.
Insurance companies only.
What happens after you submitThe person rescued never receives a bill from Onsite, including after a denial.
More than a crew count
Give the hours
their context.
The form records your response level and rescue-person hours. The narrative and supporting reports explain what your team encountered and what it did.
Who and what were involved
Add the boat owner and driver, boat identification, and insurance company and policy details. When the driver is also the owner, the form can reuse the owner’s information.
What the response required
Document watercraft, equipment, shore support, and assisting departments in the narrative and supporting records. Identify your department’s work separately from mutual aid.
Billing Level
Level 1
Most CommonBasic Response
Engine response, first responder assignment, perimeter establishment, evacuations, command, scene safety, investigation, patient contact, and hazard control.
- Rescue Person Count
- 4
- Rescue Person Hours
- 2
Response levels describe the work performed. Coverage still depends on the incident and the insurance policy.
After the handoff
One record for your team.
Follow-through from ours.
Send the incident report, response details, and insurance information. Tell us if a supporting report is still pending. We’ll review what you’ve provided and ask for anything else we need.
01
Put the response into the bill
We review the records and available insurance information, then prepare an itemized submission using Onsite’s rate schedule.
02
Stay with the carrier follow-up
Onsite submits the claim, responds to questions, and follows its progress. If a response detail needs clarification, we come back to your team.
03
Record the outcome
We record the insurer’s response. When funds are recovered, Onsite receives the payment, deducts its agreed fee, and pays your department its share.
Recovery Hub
When someone asks
what happened next.
Open Recovery Hub to check a water rescue claim, review its documents, or see recorded payments. Monthly reports and CSV exports help your team discuss the results without counting open claims as money already recovered.
The record and the result
Review the incident details, supporting documents, and claim status. Reports distinguish billed amounts from recorded payments; an open claim is not money already recovered.
The same insurance-only policy
Limited coverage or a denial never transfers our bill to the rescued person, boat owner, driver, or another individual.
Explaining the program to your cityCan water rescue responses be billed?
A water rescue response may qualify for insurance billing, but the rescue itself does not establish coverage. Onsite reviews the incident, documented resources, local authority, and available claim information before preparing supported billing. Residents and other individuals are never billed, including after an insurance denial.
What water rescue documentation matters most?
Document the location, water conditions, rescue work, personnel, unit time, and boats or equipment deployed. Include command notes and identify assisting departments separately. Available responsible-party, carrier, and claim information helps Onsite evaluate the insurance path.
Can mutual aid be included in water rescue documentation?
Yes. Identify the assisting departments, their assignments, and the resources they contributed. Keep that work separate from your department’s own records. Including mutual aid in the incident documentation does not automatically make another agency’s costs billable through your program.
Let’s look at your water rescue calls.
Tell us about the responses your department handles and the records you keep. We’ll discuss potential recovery, explain our fee, and help you decide whether the program fits.
No contracts. No subscriptions. We only get paid when you do.