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In the Face of Disaster - Managing Your Finances After a Disaster · Talking FACS

• 0:01
  Welcome to Talking Facts.
• 0:03
  What you need to know about family food finance and fitness.
• 0:07
  This nationally recognized award winning podcast is hosted by the University of Kentucky Family and Consumer Sciences Extension Program.
• 0:16
  Our educators share research knowledge with individuals,
• 0:19
  families and communities to improve quality of life.
• 0:23
  Hello and welcome to Talking Facts.
• 0:26
  What you need to know about family food finance and fitness.
• 0:29
  I am your host,
• 0:30
  Mindy mcculley Extension Specialist for instructional support at the University of Kentucky.
• 0:36
  When natural disaster strikes,
• 0:38
  it not only impacts our own family but often entire neighborhoods or communities in the face of disaster.
• 0:46
  A disaster preparedness and response program presented by Family and Consumer Sciences Extension at the University of Kentucky seeks to give families the resources they need to prepare for a natural disaster before it occurs and rebound in the aftermath.
• 1:04
  Today,
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  my guest is Doctor Nicole Huff,
• 1:07
  assistant extension professor for family finance and resource management.
• 1:12
  Specifically,
• 1:13
  Nicole is going to be discussing financial management after a natural disaster.
• 1:18
  Welcome Nicole.
• 1:19
  Hi Mandy.
• 1:20
  So natural disasters can occur any time and often come with little warning.
• 1:25
  Disasters may take many forms such as fire storms,
• 1:28
  flooding or ice while it is best to be financially prepared before an adverse weather event.
• 1:35
  What steps can we take to protect our property and finances in the aftermath?
• 1:41
  Yeah.
• 1:41
  Um,
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  you know,
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  as we've experienced here in Kentucky in the last year,
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  natural disaster does it hits as hard?
• 1:47
  It hits us fast and,
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  and while it's always best to be prepared in advance of the storm,
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  there are,
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  um,
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  many things that you can do after,
• 1:56
  um,
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  in the aftermath to help manage your finances and protect your property.
• 2:01
  And,
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  um,
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  you know,
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  just,
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  uh,
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  your finances in the aftermath.
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  One of the first things you can do is to document your losses.
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  And so just as soon as it is safe to do so,
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  after a natural disaster,
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  you know,
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  you want to document your property damage and loss and so,
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  and you want to do this before any cleanup occurs.
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  And so,
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  um,
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  you know,
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  if you have,
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  especially if volunteers are coming in to help you clean up debris or damage that,
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  um,
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  that you before any clean up,
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  that you go ahead and document in writing,
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  um,
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  as many details as you can.
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  Um,
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  but also that you take pictures and so you'll likely be required to offer written documentation uh,
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  before you can submit claims on your homeowners insurance or on an insurance policy or,
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  um,
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  you know,
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  even to qualify for assistance programs.
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  And so,
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  you know,
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  these can be as long as they're high quality pictures,
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  you can snap these right on your phone,
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  whatever is convenient,
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  you can,
• 3:00
  um,
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  maybe,
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  um,
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  uh elicit the help of those volunteers,
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  um,
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  that are eager to help you,
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  um,
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  then task everyone with helping to,
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  uh take pictures of those documents and then you want to write as much information as you can about any property that was damaged,
• 3:18
  um,
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  or lost,
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  that you lost.
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  And so this is like your the manufacturer,
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  the model and numbers that you can get um the age uh the value of this item,
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  both what it,
• 3:30
  what it's um its current value and then what its new value would be and then what kind of damages that occurred?
• 3:37
  And these are a lot of details.
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  It is so much to manage,
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  but the more that you can document your losses immediately following the natural disaster,
• 3:46
  the better chances that you are to have your,
• 3:49
  your claims filed with insurance.
• 3:52
  So understanding your homeowners insurance policies can be tricky.
• 3:56
  What are some key things listeners should know about homeowners insurance and insurance claims?
• 4:01
  Yeah,
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  they can be tricky and they can be overwhelming and you know,
• 4:05
  if always reach out to your insurance agent if you don't understand your policy.
• 4:12
  And so it's,
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  it's best to do this as you,
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  you know,
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  prepare and what insurance uh helps us do is to mitigate those risks right,
• 4:20
  in the event that the the unthinkable happens.
• 4:23
  But let's say it's happened and,
• 4:24
  and you haven't talked with your insurance agent ahead of time and you're trying to understand your policy.
• 4:30
  I mean,
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  you know,
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  the first thing that you want to understand is,
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  um,
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  what is the current replacement cost?
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  How much,
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  you know,
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  what are you currently insured at?
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  And,
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  and so most homes are typically insured at 80% of the current replacement cost.
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  And so what replacement cost is,
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  is,
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  it's the amount of money it would take to rebuild a similar home based on today's construction prices,
• 4:55
  you know,
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  but many homeowners don't learn that they're under insured until after a disaster strikes.
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  And so you want to find out what,
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  um,
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  you know,
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  how much are you insured for?
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  And then if it's less than 80% because things like inflation can,
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  you know,
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  the policy that you took out,
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  you know,
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  20 years ago may not cover the,
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  the current replacement cost of,
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  of your home today with today's manufacturing prices and today's lumber prices.
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  And so you want to figure out what this is and because that's gonna impact how much money you get back from insurance,
• 5:31
  from a claim and anything that is the difference in what your home is insured for,
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  and that replacement cost is gonna be an out of pocket expense.
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  And so if you have questions about,
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  um,
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  your policy,
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  reach out to your insurance agent and this can be frustrating,
• 5:47
  right?
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  Especially if many people in your area are reaching out if adjusters are um and agents are just overwhelmed,
• 5:55
  be patient but be persistent so that you can make sure that you have it explained so that you understand what,
• 6:02
  what reimbursement would look like for you.
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  Um And there are four primary reasons that insurance claims are denied.
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  And so the first goes back to that first tip um is lack of documented evidence.
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  And so that's why documenting your losses is very important,
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  lack of proof of possession is covered in your policy.
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  And so if you're listening now and you haven't experience a natural disaster,
• 6:25
  then you want to take steps to,
• 6:27
  to before the unthinkable happens and go ahead and document and inventory your home and so that you can prove what you actually owned.
• 6:36
  So a third reason is damage or loss isn't covered by the policy.
• 6:40
  So it goes back to not understanding your policy and what's covered and then if repairs after a disaster don't meet building codes.
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  And so that's a,
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  that's another topic for another day.
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  But there are many things that you can do to help at least expedite that process or you know,
• 6:57
  do your due diligence with documentation and understanding your homeowners insurance policy.
• 7:02
  And I think these are all great tips.
• 7:04
  If you have been affected by a natural disaster that has done widespread damage to your home,
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  it can be overwhelming.
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  What advice can you offer for people to simplify and streamline the details.
• 7:17
  How in the world do they keep it all straight?
• 7:19
  Yes.
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  And so um to be less overwhelmed with everything,
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  in addition to documenting those laws says you've got to track your actions because in,
• 7:30
  in the days that follow a natural disaster and in the weeks and months,
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  um you're gonna be faced with many decisions that can affect your family's,
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  you know,
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  financial well-being.
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  And so it is a very stressful time for your family.
• 7:43
  So,
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  you know,
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  remembering all those little details of every conversation that you've had and all the actions that you've,
• 7:51
  you've had to take or will have to take can be challenging,
• 7:54
  it can be very overwhelming and um you know,
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  to keep everything from blurring together,
• 8:01
  you want to,
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  to really track your actions.
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  So specifically,
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  you want to record the who the,
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  when the where and the what of each interaction.
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  So,
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  you know,
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  who did you speak with?
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  You wanna list that person's name,
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  the organization,
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  their contact information and who are they,
• 8:19
  what is their role within their company?
• 8:21
  Um When did this conversation take place the date,
• 8:25
  the time and the duration of your interaction,
• 8:27
  you know,
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  was it AAA quick email or was it,
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  did you meet with them for an hour in their office?
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  And so,
• 8:34
  so when did you meet um where did it occur?
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  And so was it a phone call an in person conversation?
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  Was it at your home?
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  Did somebody come over and survey your home or your property or did you go to their place of business?
• 8:47
  And then what finally,
• 8:48
  what did you talk about?
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  So you provide as many details for your records,
• 8:52
  but also for your memory because um we do when stress levels are high,
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  all those little details tend to run together.
• 9:02
  And so you know,
• 9:03
  you can keep track of this.
• 9:04
  We recommend three things.
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  So first just a notebook,
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  get you a simple notebook that you can record all of these things down in so that everything is together,
• 9:14
  get you a calendar so that you can also make a note on the date when a conversation took place when an action occurred when a repair is scheduled,
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  but that you can keep track of it on AAA calendar and then keep a large envelopes,
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  something that you can put all the receipts or any kind of documentation,
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  any paperwork that you sign,
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  you want something where you can keep everything together,
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  so track your actions and then also,
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  you know,
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  track all of those receipts,
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  all of those dates and that's a great information to,
• 9:48
  to have and a great way to keep it stored.
• 9:51
  What about someone whose finances have been impacted by a natural disaster in some way?
• 9:57
  Do you have tips to offer for that person to recover financially?
• 10:01
  Yeah.
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  And so the,
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  the last thing that we'll talk about today is this idea of financial recovery and so if you have been impacted by disaster or any,
• 10:12
  any just kind of adverse event that has you worried about paying your bills,
• 10:16
  um You want to just contact your creditors and your lenders to explain the situation.
• 10:22
  And so if it is um a natural disaster,
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  you know,
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  you may can arrange a modified payment plan,
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  you might can apply for forbearance,
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  which is when you can put,
• 10:33
  put payments on hold And,
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  and so many lenders if you have been a good,
• 10:38
  um if you have a good payment history,
• 10:40
  a good credit history with your lender,
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  um they may offer forbearance options on your mortgage to give you a few months to get back on your feet and you may,
• 10:48
  can qualify for lower interest rates on your loans or your debt.
• 10:52
  And because really in the event of an emergency,
• 10:55
  you want to avoid using high cost credit if possible.
• 10:59
  And so instead look for ways to get back on your feet by reducing the expenses that you have and look for ways to um accept,
• 11:08
  you know,
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  assistance where you can and that may be um uh a modified payment schedule.
• 11:14
  Um and you may also be eligible for federal disaster assistance through fema.
• 11:20
  And so if you are ever um curious as to,
• 11:24
  if your area qualifies for fema and federal assistance,
• 11:29
  uh you can go to W W W dot Disaster assistance dot gov and we'll also link those in the show notes,
• 11:37
  but it will tell you if you,
• 11:38
  you put in your location in your county and it tells you if that qualifies for federal assistance and there are instructions then on what to do,
• 11:47
  but it can help uh fema,
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  for example,
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  if you do qualify,
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  can help meet a variety of your needs.
• 11:53
  Um But there also may be local assistance in your area that can help meet those needs.
• 11:58
  And so you can always reach out to your county extension office for information on community partners or agencies um or information like the publication that matches this podcast.
• 12:10
  But for tools that you can use as you recover financially.
• 12:15
  Nicole,
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  I'm sure that recovering financially from a natural disaster can be a long and stressful process.
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  And we're gonna have to remember that it is a marathon,
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  not a sprint.
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  There are many considerations that we haven't discussed today,
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  but we can certainly encourage our listeners to learn more about ways to recover when faced with this disaster.
• 12:36
  Um They can download the Kentucky Family and Consumer Sciences extension service publication series in the face of disaster,
• 12:44
  which covers many ways to prepare for an emergency and ways to recover if affected by one.
• 12:50
  Topics include finances,
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  food and water,
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  considerations,
• 12:54
  ways to protect your family and home,
• 12:56
  and how to take care of your mental health after a traumatic event.
• 13:00
  Thank you for joining me today.
• 13:02
  I know that this is a topic that we don't want to have to talk about,
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  but it is certainly important to consider.
• 13:07
  Thank you for having me,
• 13:08
  Mindy.
• 13:08
  Yes,
• 13:09
  very timely and important topic.
• 13:11
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• 13:13
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• 13:33
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• 14:00
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• 14:02
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• 14:03
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