Thompson & McCarty, P.C. CPA

Most people undertand the importance of keeping their valuables in a safe place in case of an emergency. But what happens if the accident happens to your "safe place"? Hurricanes Katrina and Rita just emphasized the point.

Many people keep their valuables in a safe deposit box. Of course, the safe deposit box is uaually waterproof and fireproof. However, if the bank is destroyed by fire, flood, or some other disaster chances are pretty good that you will never see the contents of your safe depsoit box again.

The time to plan for how to recover from such a disaster is before it happens. By taking some steps now, you may be able to get your life and finances back in order quickly if disaster strikes.

Get Ready To Go

Prepare a disaster "to-go" package containing essential documents, critical phone numbers, and irreplaceable items, so you can easily grab it if you need to get out in a hurry.

• Essential documents could include original or phot copies of birth and marriage certificates, passports, insurance policies, wills, deeds, trust documents, tax records, vehicle titles, retirement plan records, prescriptions, and banking or brokerage account numbers.
• Critical phone numbers could include your attorney, physician, creditors, banks, financial advisors, family members, and insurers.

• Irreplaceable items could include photographs and keepsakes. You could save space by scanning photographs and important documents and copy them to a CR-ROM, or other suitable storage device.

Use your head and determine a plan of action in advance of a disaster. A little planning now could make your life much easier later if the unthinkable happens.