What Should I do if a Relief Organization Doesn't do the Work they've Claimed? How do I unclaim another organization's work order?

Q1 : We are receiving calls from folks that have not been contacted after being "claimed" in Crisis Cleanup. Our call center operators are getting frustrated, so any advice would be appreciated.

Q2 : According to the Crisis Cleanup system, an organization had claimed a work order G350. But they said they didn't claim it and didn't have any intent of working on it. I tried to "EDIT" and then uncheck the "Claimed" checkbox. After saving and refreshing, the work order still showed as being claimed by them.

Is this a glitch? Or are they the only ones who can unclaim their own work?

A1 : The basic answer is that it is up to each VOADs to be responsible in their use of Crisis Cleanup. Each VOAD should only claim what it is committed to complete. Each VOAD should only claim a project where they have had direct contact with the owner (by phone or in person) so that the owner knows who has committed to do the work. If a VOADs priorities change, that VOAD is responsible for “unclaiming” the work (which can be done using the “Edit” button in the Case summary block) and notifying the owner.

If the work has been “claimed” without any contact with the owner, and the VOAD does not follow up, there is another way to help the owner get directly connected.

The 2-1-1 operator taking the call can use the listing of all the Crisis Clean Up Cases (a sort-able spreadsheet is easily downloaded from the website) to look up the owners property, verify that it is in fact in Crisis Cleanup and “claimed”, and identifying who it was “Claimed by” as reflected in the database. The 2-1-1 operator can then pass that owner the contact information for the VOAD that claimed the work so that the owner can connect directly to that VOAD.

In the event that a particular VOAD is unresponsive, then other VOADs should reach out and encourage them to act, or offer to take some of the load.

If the property is in the Crisis Cleanup database, but has not been claimed, then the owner needs to be advised that their need is in the database, but that there is no way to guarantee that a VOAD will respond to their need in any set timeframe.

In the end, Crisis Cleanup is a valuable tool that is only as effective as participating VOADs make it.

A2 : Without negating any of the foregoing, there may be times when it is appropriate to unclaim a work order on behalf of another organization that is MIA, or otherwise unwilling or unable to unclaim a work order.

To unclaim a work order claimed by another organization, follow these steps:

1. Find the work order on the map. Click on the icon.
   
2. Click the "Edit" button.
3. In the Assessment Form, click the "Claim" checkbox. Click "Save." Your organization now owns the work order.
4. On the map, click the "Unclaim" button in the Infobox.