Tips For Protecting Finances In A Natural Disaster
STUDIO CITY (CBS) — Have you ever wondered what steps you can take to protect your finances in the event of a natural disaster?
Larry Palmer — a financial advisor and Managing Director of The Palmer Group at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney — visited KCAL9 Friday to share some tips on properly preparing your money for a disaster. Larry's six tips are:
1. In the event of a major natural disaster, everyone should have a one month supply of cash in a safe or alternate place.
· ATM's will be down in the days following a natural disaster, and you won't have access to cash.
· Keep cash in different locations, such as your home and place of business in case one structure doesn't survive a natural disaster.
2. Make sure your assets are spread out among a few financial institutions, and one should be a national institution.
· You don't want to assume a local financial institution will be running in the event of a natural catastrophe.
3. Choose one trustworthy person to be the Executor of your Estate.
· This person should have a hard copy of your financial account information and assets (including passwords) so he/she can access your account in case you need it.
4. Every person should have an updated Living Trust and Will (especially if you have kids) because you don't know who will survive a natural disaster.
5. Geographical diversity of your assets is extremely important in the case of a natural disaster. Don't keep all your assets in one nation's currency.
6. Most businesses, homes, and cars are under-insured. Be sure you have comprehensive insurance for your assets so that any liability you have based on a natural disaster can be transferred to the insurance company.
Larry can be reached here.
