It seems like every week, there is a new hurricane. With Hurricane Dorian barreling towards the Southeast Coast, many Americans are taking stock of their possessions and wondering if they are secure and protected. Luckily, that question is one that you don’t need to wonder about with no answer. In this article, we’ll give you a mini-guide on how to protect your assets against life’s (and Mother Nature’s) unpredictability. 

Don’t Wait 

Before getting into some ideas for asset protection, it’s important to stress that you don’t wait. Hurricane Dorian may not have your location in its path, but that doesn’t mean you should forget about asset protection until a huge storm is coming right at you. If you act quickly, asset protection will be one thing that you can strike off your checklist before the next big storm.

Secure Your Data (For Business Owners) 

The number-one thing that you should protect as a business owner is your employees. Prepare an emergency disaster plan and kit in the event that employees are trapped in the workplace. Human life is not replaceable. 

Number two on the asset protection list for business owners should be data. This includes data on computers, hard drives, paper format, and whatever other form in which you keep your records. Destruction of data can set a business back by weeks, if not months. It may even cause irreparable harm. Make sure that the data stored on physical property is protected. Either move the records to a safe location or copy them into a computer system that will be far from the storm. Store the data where the storm cannot reach, whether electronic, real, or otherwise. 

Insurance, Insurance, Insurance 

Insurance is an expense that you don’t know you need until it’s too late. Sure, the extra money spent on insurance could go for something fun, but it isn’t worth the pain that not having it will cause. Acquire insurance on your assets. Home insurance, flood insurance, fire insurance—the policy payments you make are investments in the security of your future. Also, consider life insurance policies. 

Estate Planning

Estate planning can help you prepare for pretty much anything. If you have a trust or a will, you can determine where your assets will go after you pass away. You can also select guardians for your kids. This might seem like an extreme preparation plan, but you never know. It’s better to have a plan in case of the worst possible outcome than to suffer the consequences of not having one.

Some Odds and Ends 

No disaster preparedness guide would be complete without a mention of physical things you can do to protect your belongings. Disaster preparedness kits are available at pretty much any major store, especially in areas that are prone to storms. Don’t forget, before you evacuate or hunker down, to take some concrete, real-labor precautions when it comes to your home, property, and other assets. This takes some good old fashioned elbow grease to complete, but, if you have your family help, it won’t take forever.

Sandbags

When guarding against water flooding your home, barricade the exterior with sandbags and/or urethane foam. Sandbags have been used to guard against floods for a long time. They absorb the water and provide a barrier. Before a hurricane hits, people rush the buy sandbags. This means that, if you buy them now, when your home is not in danger, you won’t be a victim of a lack of supply. 

Boards

Another trick is boarding up windows. Shattered glass is hazardous, both at the time it breaks and after, during cleanup. Boarding up windows will block wind damage. While many windows, especially in Florida and other hurricane-prone areas, are made to withstand high-impact winds, you can never be too sure that the storm won’t pick up an object and fling it at your window. Even the strongest window can break if debris is flung hard enough. 

Secure Loose Objects 

Speaking of debris flying around, one way to minimize that is to secure loose objects that the wind can pick up and hurl at your house. This includes your car, kids’ toys, grill, patio furniture, and anything outside that can be moved. While you can’t control what your neighbors do, secure the loose items in your own area to provide some control.

There are a lot of ways in which you can protect your assets during hurricane season, and this list is by no means exhaustive. Natural disasters are not predictable. We know that they will occur, but we don’t know the exact time or location. Don’t wait to secure your assets. Take these steps immediately, even if Hurricane Dorian hasn’t set its sights on you.