A Handbook for Hurricane Season

We have learned a lot from the storms of the past few years, and this year's hurricane season officially began June 1. With that in mind, there are a number of things you can do to get your agency and policyholders ready for hurricane season. While avoiding a hurricane that is headed your way is impossible, taking some action and being prepared for the season ahead of time can still be helpful. Doing so also will leave you and your policyholders better off. Here are a few tips to get you started in the right direction.

Have a disaster plan. Make a detailed plan that covers every aspect of your business and is designed to get you back in operation as soon as possible after the storm. The role your agency plays in handling your clients' claims is the most important thing to focus on once a storm has struck.

Have alternative power source for your agency. Buying a generator is the ideal solution. Having a generator installed in your agency that powers up without interruption the minute power is lost can save you tens of thousands of dollars — or more — in the long run. Generators can be powered by propane gas, regular fuel, or diesel and generally cost between $4,000 and $5,000.

As with all generators, make sure they are outside in an open, well-ventilated area when in use. Plan to have plenty of fuel on hand in case your power is out for several days or weeks. You can buy the gas a day or two before the storm hits, which allows you to better judge the severity of the impending storm in order to properly evaluate how much gas you may need.

Backup your agency's computer information and forward to an off-site location. This could be to a server located several states away. One good place to do this is with your agency-management system provider. They already handle your system so ask them to act as a backup in case you would ever lose your database information during a storm.

If your agency is not fully automated, this would be a good time to consider upgrading your system. In the meantime, a good alternative to make sure you are ready would be to run lists of your clients, their policy numbers, contact information, and insurance company claim numbers to have them ready in advance.

Pre-arrange to have your agency's telephones forwarded to a call center. Provide the call center with a script and information that includes the phone numbers of your carriers' claim contact numbers. Then your insureds can report their claims via their cell phones directly to the companies. Incoming calls to your agency also can be forwarded to agency employees working from home to assist your clients.

Have your agency web site hosted by a service provider off-site. This way, your web site will remain operational throughout the disaster and it will serve as the main information source for your clients who may need help. Your web site also can provide lists of emergency contact numbers, claim numbers, and information on what to do to preserve damaged property. It also can show people where you can be reached if your agency office is damaged.

This is one of the main things we learned from Hurricane Wilma. Many businesses had their web sites hosted by someone nearby or in the same city. When a storm devastates an entire region, the building for the company that is hosting your web site may be affected. This could jeopardize an extremely important information source for your clients, especially if your agency's phones also are down and people cannot reach you. Your clients could feel abandoned if they cannot reach their insurance providers in a serious situation and severely undermine your credibility.

Arrange for an alternative site in case your main agency building is damaged. This can be an RV, tent, another building, or whatever works for you. If you are forced to move to temporary facilities, be sure that your agency call-center voice message and your web site give this information so that your policyholders can contact you or come to the alternative site, if necessary.

Load your agency management system and file information onto laptops. This will give you access to your insureds' policy information that may be vital during the disaster. It also will enable your employees to get back to work more quickly in order to help your clients after the storm hits. Your performance and response to your insureds is the most critical thing you can do after the storm. This is when your policyholders are counting on you; you need to be there for them with the information they need to begin the rebuilding process once the storm has passed.

If your agency has the default generator suggested above, your computers should remain up and running but laptops are a good backup because they can be recharged quickly and are portable.

Provide access to your agency management system from home. This would be important in an instance where employees cannot get to work or your office building is severely damaged. This way, your employees can work online from their homes to assist in taking claim information from policyholders.

Have plenty of hurricane supplies available. Make sure your agency is stocked up on batteries, bottled water, snacks, canned goods, bleach, paper towels, trash bags, and cleaning supplies. Have a good stock of these supplies available to provide for clients that may come to your office for help. These also will be invaluable for your employees who are able to come to work because many stores in the stricken area may not be open.

By doing the things summarized above, your agency will have computer access, electricity, telephones, and an operating web site still after the storm. You will be much better prepared to handle your clients' claims with these tools in place. But what about your policyholders? What can you do to help get them ready when a storm is approaching?

Process all pending endorsements and renewals with effective dates current to the impending storm. One good thing about hurricanes is that you receive a few days of advance warning that they are approaching. Try to get all renewal requests and endorsements submitted to your carriers prior to the storm so that your clients' policies are up to date when the storm hits. This could also go a long way to reducing the chances of suffering an E&O claim after the storm.

Provide all of your policyholders with a letter on hurricane preparedness at the start of hurricane season. This letter should advise your clients to review their policies, coverages, limits, and deductibles so that they are aware of their protection and to put their policies in a safe place for use after the storm, if needed. This letter should also let your policyholders know that flood coverage is not offered under most policies and offer them a quote. This may be an important area that your policyholder may not have considered in the past.

Some agents provide a list of all of their insurance company claim office telephone numbers along with the letter so that insureds have this information already in hand in case they need to report a claim. It is best to try and get your insureds to directly contact the insurance companies to report their claims, if possible. This expedites the reporting and handling of the claim and the insured can then speak directly to the claim adjuster about his specific situation.

The letter should also state that new coverage, new locations, and current limits cannot be increased or bound once the storm is approaching. That is why it may be a good idea to send this letter out at the beginning of the season so as to give everyone time to get their policies in order before the wind starts to blow.

Get emergency contact numbers from your policyholders. Make it a practice to obtain the cell phone numbers of each of your clients as an alternative contact number so that you can reach them in the event of a disaster and regular phone service is not available.

With the above items in place as hurricane season begins, you should have your clients' policies up to date, have provided them with their claim contact information, and have emergency numbers to contact them. Additional information also can be provided to them on how to protect their properties from further damage until help arrives.

The above information is provided as a guide to get you started on how to get your agency and policyholders ready to survive a direct hit from a hurricane. For more information on disaster preparedness, you can go to www.FAIA.com and click on catastrophe for listings on how to formulate a viable disaster plan and much more information.

Being prepared for a major hurricane is vital to the long-term success of your agency. Your clients count on you more during a crisis than at any other time. Making these ideas part of your hurricane disaster plan will put you in a position to be up and running and ready to help your clients immediately after the storm. Even your most difficult customer will be forever indebted to you if you can respond quickly and professionally in getting them the help they need in a crisis situation. Some agents go so far as to help arrange for additional generators for their clients to get their businesses back in operation or to have roofing tarps available.

There is a well-known saying that goes, “You don't plan to fail, you fail to plan.” With hurricane season upon us, now is the time to plan and this information will get you started. The ideas included above are not all prohibitively expensive and could be invaluable in an emergency situation. Hopefully, this will be a mild hurricane season, but I think it makes good sense that we plan for the worst, just in case.

Robert Briggs is the marketing director for Hull & Company, www.hullco.com.