Yahoo Lifestyle 9 Things Insurance Agents DESPERATELY Want You to Know If You Ever Have to Evacuate Your Home
The Southern California wildfires show just how quickly a disaster can upend our lives. Just a week after the Palisades Fire began, 130,000 people are under evacuation orders and another 87,000 Angelenos are in evacuation warning zones, facing the prospect of needing to leave their homes at any moment.
If you’re ever in this situation, always listen to evacuation orders—your safety is the top priority. But if you have time, a little preparation now can make a big difference when every second matters. Here’s what insurance agents say homeowners should do before evacuations to protect their most important belongings and make their return to home a little easier.
Establish an Evacuation Plan
Before doing anything on your property, make sure you have an evacuation plan in place, says Michael Silverman, founder and president of Silver Lining Insurance Agency. This should include exit paths from your home, arrangements for pets, clear routes out of your neighborhood, and predetermined meeting points outside of high-risk areas.
“Knowing how you're going to get out and where you plan to go will help save time in the event of an emergency,” Silverman says.
Compile Important Documents
Having your important documents ready to go in case of an evacuation can make a stressful situation a little more manageable. This includes things like passports, birth certificates, insurance policies, home and automobile titles, and financial records—basically, the papers you’d need to prove who you are and help get you back on your feet.
“Store them in a waterproof bag or upload them to the cloud for easy access,” says Nick Ramirez, California-based agent at Goosehead Insurance.
Pack a Go Bag
Pack a “go bag” so you have the essentials to stay safe and comfortable if you need to evacuate on short notice. The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) has created a thorough evacuation packing list to help you remember the must-haves, like:
Medications
A three-day supply of food and water for you and your pets
Change of clothes
Sturdy shoes
Glasses or contact lenses
Car keys
Credit cards and cash
First aid kit
Flashlight
Battery-powered radio with backup batteries
Copies of important documents
“This will help to sustain you while staying in a new place temporarily and make the insurance process more seamless later,” says Steve Powell, president of EFI Global and executive vice president at Property Americas for Sedgwick, a global third-party claims administrator.
Preparing a go bag in advance also gives you the chance to pack cherished family photos and other easy-to-carry valuables, along with helpful items, like hard drives and chargers for electronics.
Document Your Property
If it’s safe, and only if you have the time, take photos and videos of your home and all the valuables inside.
“Having documentation before the event makes the property claims process much smoother and will serve as a relief once the disaster is over,” notes Powell. “The more proof of damage to your property that you can show, the better you will fare when it comes to reimbursement.”
This is also a good opportunity to update your home inventory. It can be hard to remember every last thing that was in your home if you experience a total loss, so this type of record-keeping can help make filing a claim a lot easier. There’s even a free app that can help you start your home inventory.
Create a Defensible Space
Creating a defensible space around your home is one of the best ways to reduce the risk of fire damage. This involves clearing flammable materials like leaves and outdoor furniture away from your yard.
“Flammable materials like above-ground fuel sources and even items like cushions, umbrellas, and wooden furniture can act as fuel for wildfires, spreading flames to your house. Appropriately storing these items reduces the fire’s ability to ignite your property,” advises Lauren Szerlip Dowling, division service leader at World Insurance Associates, Private Client Group, who works with high-value homeowners in California.
Look around for anything else that might catch fire in your yard and store it in a safer place, like a garage or basement.
Turn Off Your Utilities and Sprinklers
Before leaving your home, turn off your climate control systems, says Dowling.
“Active HVAC systems can pull smoke and embers into your home, increasing the risk of ignition. Turning off natural gas and pilot lights helps prevent leaks and potential explosions during a fire,” she explains.
Turn off your home’s sprinkler system, too, even though it might feel counter-intuitive.
“While sprinklers may seem like a good defense, they can drain local water pressure needed by firefighters. Conserving water ensures that first responders have the resources they need to combat the wildfire,” Dowling adds.
Leave Your Lights On
While you’ll want to turn off your heat and air conditioning before evacuating, do the opposite with your lights, says Dowling.
“During wildfire conditions, heavy smoke can obscure visibility. Illuminating your home helps firefighters and emergency responders locate your property, improving the chances of protection,” she explains.
It’s a simple step that can make a big difference in making sure your home gets the attention it needs.
Seal Your Home
Another important step you can take to protect your home before evacuating is sealing all openings, including doors and windows.
“Wildfires spread rapidly due to drafts and radiant heat. By sealing your home’s openings, you limit the entry points for embers and reduce the chance of flames reaching the interior,” says Dowling.
With that being said, locking your doors and windows might not be the best idea during a wildfire evacuation.
“Locking it prevents possible looting, but there are thoughts that if the fire department needs access, that delays things if they have to break down the door,” says Carol Burke, commercial insurance accounts manager at Feehan Insurance Agency.
Know What Your Policy Covers
Before an evacuation, it can be helpful to review the temporary housing your insurance provides in emergencies through its “loss of use” coverage. It will offset reasonable housing and living expenses if your home is temporarily uninhabitable.
“You’ll likely have to make initial payments upfront and ensure you’re in touch with an adjuster who will work on getting those expenses reimbursed,” says Ramirez.
Take note of the limits of your policy and plan accordingly.
“If it covers $50,000, maybe don’t stay at the Ritz because that won’t last long,” says Ramirez.
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