7 tips for creating your family disaster plan

Having a disaster plan can help you recover as quickly as possible. The success of your disaster plan will often depend on the people involved having a clear understanding of their roles and how they communicate with each other. Consider these “what if” scenarios as you develop your plan:

• What if our family is separated at the time of a disaster? Agree on a meeting location and how you will communicate before disaster strikes.
• What is our evacuation route? Consult your local emergency management authority and make sure everyone has access to the information.
• What if our agreed-on meeting place is inaccessible? Decide on a secondary location.
• What if cell towers or the power grid goes down, making it difficult to reach local and out-of-state contacts? Ensure you have multiple ways of reaching your contacts.

The communications aspect of your plan may prove to be the most critical. Consider how your communications might differ in the event of a natural disaster as compared to a human-made disaster (e.g., civil unrest, terrorism). Your disaster communication plan should outline who will handle the communications and who should be contacted first in the event of a disaster; it should include a family phone tree and distribution lists, and a plan for how you will communicate and initiate family notification.

Helpful Resources:

Don’t wait until disaster happens to try and build your go-bag of supplies. If something does happen, you’ll be glad you have everything you need at hand. Just think about how difficult it was to get cleaning supplies at the onset of the pandemic. The following is a list of some of recommended supplies that will help you and your loved ones in almost any emergency or disaster:

With more time being spent at home, many families are renovating and enhancing their homes. Why not take the opportunity to reinforce your property to help protect it against natural and human-related disasters? Here are some tips to consider:

• Install a fireproof safe that is bolted to the ground on the lowest floor in your home to house your jewelry and other small valuables.
• Purchase and install a whole-house backup generator.
• When building or remodeling in hurricane-prone areas, build walls and floors from concrete-filled forms made from polystyrene and recycled plastic that can withstand 300+ mph winds and heavy rain. If you are doing new construction or even replacing a roof, consider ultra-strong connectors on your roof and install high-security doors and windows.
• In areas where severe storms and tornadoes are common, build a storm shelter with a bathroom and accommodations for sleeping and preparing food.
• In wildfire areas, install fireproof roofing materials and repair any roof cracks. It’s also a good idea to contact a licensed contractor to retrofit all vents with flame- and ember-resistive models.

By making even small enhancements to your property, you can help ensure that, whatever the impacts severe weather or other disasters may bring, you’ll be better prepared.

It’s also important to ensure you have relationships with key service providers and contractors so they will respond to you quickly in an emergency. For example, if you are an art or wine collector and you haven’t already, consider creating a list that includes a collection manager, fine art packers/shippers, fine art warehouses, art conservators, wine evacuation vendors, and your insurance broker/agent. Find the best resources for your needs.

If you need help locating a reputable service provider, Chubb has a network of thousands of pre-qualified professionals who are ready to assist. Simply log on to the Client Portal (log-in required) and select Benefits and Offers to get started. You can also access our network right from the Chubb Mobile app (App Store | Google Play).

Valuables such as artwork and other collectibles may require additional steps.