Hurricane Sandy left an estimated 8 million households and small businesses without power and caused what is likely to be billions of dollars’ worth of damage.
If your small business has been impacted by hurricane Sandy, there are steps that you can take to quickly get up and running again:
Assess the Damage, Take Pictures and Videos
Use your mobile devices and begin digitally recording the damage in videos and still images and be sure to write down all of your losses. This data will be vital when making your insurance claims.
Re-read Your Insurance Policy, Contact Your Agent ASAP
It is likely that you will have some disputes with your insurance company over what is covered and what is not. Be sure you have read the policy over and know what it states and do not delay in placing a claim. There will be thousands of small business owners filing claims, time is of the essence.
Utilize the Small Business Administration (SBA) Resources
The agency’s website has a page dedicated to helping small businesses recover from natural disasters. Use your mobile devices to access the information.
Apply for an SBA Disaster Loan
The SBA Disaster Loan decision-making process should be quick because the agency’s mission is to help small business owners get up and running again. Apply for one if you qualify.
Meet With Your Accountant
If you are looking for a SBA Disaster Loan or other type of small business loan, having accurate accounting is essential. Get your books in order and meet with your accountant if possible.
Secure a Line of Credit
While you might be among the lucky small business owners who safely rode the storm out, others may not have been so fortunate. Those to whom you have extended credit may take longer than usual to pay their bills or, worse yet, they may go out of business altogether. That leaves you with expected income that you may never receive.
Additionally, if you had to close for a few days, you will have lost revenue. Having a line of credit available for such instances is vital to make sure that you have working capital and the ability to meet payroll.
Every entrepreneur has invested a great deal of time, energy and financial resources toward growing his or her business. Before the next storm hits, some things to keep in mind are:
- Determine if you are satisfied with the insurance company’s resolution. If not, look for a new insurer.
- Continuously backup all your records on your computers. This is a good practice not only in times of disaster, but also throughout the year.
- If you lost revenue because you did not invest in a generator, don’t make the same mistake twice. Buy one so that you have it before the next storm hits.
Stay safe!
Hurricane Sandy, Brooklyn, NY Photo via Shutterstock
My sympathy goes out to all those affected by the storm.
Thanks for sharing this article, Rohit. You’ve shared some great tips to help offline business owners get back on their feet. I feel sorry for all the families and businesses that were affected by the storm and my heart goes out to you all.
Tragedies like this makes me even more grateful that my business is internet based.
Ti
Brilliant post that leaves a lot to think about, well done.
Those in charge can’t post distance-below-sea-level in our subway stations, so what hope is there for being able to buy a new car that, with a dual-purpose alternator/voltage regulator that could easily recharge enough slow-trickle batteries to, in an emergency, power a single-family house?
Get used to the idea that this planet and its solar system periodically goes through extreme cycles of heat (as in the Age of Reptiles) and cold ( as in the Ice Age) as it moves through the galaxy, and stop blaming it all on greenhouse gasses.
According to some of the people on Coast to Coast AM, if the tremendous amount of Methane temporarily imprisoned in sea bottoms and arctic tundra consists of Carbon Thirteen, moreover, this planet really is in for some bad stuff.
Stock up on nonperishable food in durable containers, (oatmeal in 50 pound bags and store it in 5 gallon plastic buckets), get yourself a dc/ac power converter, hoard car batteries and find a way to rig up a way to recharge them with an automobile alternator/voltage regulator powered by your bicycle and maybe you’ll get lucky enough to find a cave when the biggest one finally comes (and goes?) and your descendants might even be able to avoid having to go back to learning how to make fire and chip tools and weapons out of rock
This is a bad situation but small business owners know better than anyone how to work through a hard time, even one like this. Great tips.