I was recently interviewed for a teleseminar by Fern LaRocca, a Certified Financial Planner at Whole-Hearted-Way, and provided listeners with “Three tips to prepare your home and business for any disaster.”
- Get serious about an Emergency Kit for your home and your office.
- Your business may not survive without a Contingency Plan.
- A Financial Plan is the essential last step.
Emergency Kit
- House or office may be dangerous or impossible to enter (gas/ electricity/ water OFF!)
- It could be 3 to 7 days with NO outside help
- You need essential supplies for this period of time
- Water, food (preferably no cooking)
- Clothes, shoes, rain protection, sleeping gear
- Medicines, radios, flashlights, batteries, some cash, etc.
- Special needs for babies, elder people, pets
- Have a family contact plan and practice/ update it every quarter
Contingency Plan
- Up to 80% of small businesses disappear in a major crisis if there’s no plan
- Backup or copies of data, project details, equipment and supply inventories
- Contact information for employees, vendors, suppliers, clients, etc.
- Consider needs to shelter-in-place, transportation back to homes, families’ safety
- Create a team with assigned responsibilities to handle the basics for business, employee and customer needs, with access to all information/ equipment/ supplies/ cash/ etc.
- Specific plans will depend on your business type and needs, for example -
- Can all employees work from home (when phone, power restored)?
- Will you need an alternate, temporary site?
- Get help with an up to date list of available sites;
- Consider a competitor’s premises in another area
Financial Plan
- Your business and your family will need money or access to funds to weather the long recovery & re-building period
- Letter of Credit (LOC)
- Home Equity Letter of Credit (HELOC)
- Stash of cash – small bills and accessible
- Consider insurance coverage options
- Earthquake coverage on your home
- Check with broker or agent: California Earthquake Authority (CEA), Geo-Vera a private insurer
- Coverage is expensive and limited and deductibles are high (15% or more)
- You can cover your dwelling, minimal contents and very short-term additional living expense
- Business Earthquake coverage
- Full coverage can be expensive and deductibles are high
- Earthquake Sprinkler Leakage (EQSL) might be a satisfactory alternative to protect property in moderate quakes
- Prevention steps as an alternative to insurance – these are more important than insurance, so do these FIRST!
- Prevent collapse – various retrofit projects (sheer walls, foundation bolts, etc.)
- Prevent fire from inside (eg., flexible gas lines); prepare for fire from outside (reduce brush, have water ready)
- Consider parking a car outside the garage for easy access and ability to leave the area
- Earthquake coverage on your home
See website, www.risksmartsolutions.com/white_papers for “Open for Business” PDF
Also check www.72hours.org for more on kits and plans
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