When natural disasters occur, they can devastate your business if you are not adequately prepared. Having sufficient insurance coverage and securely backing up your important files is important. Unfortunately, some natural disasters strike with little warning. After a disaster happens, you'll want to rebuild your business as quickly as you can. Rebuilding a business after a disaster is not always a straightforward process. By preparing for the worst before it happens, rebuilding your business may be a little easier.

Make sure you understand your insurance coverage

You should make certain that you thoroughly understand your insurance policy. This can help you in both your preparation for a disaster as well as in the aftermath of one. It is best to find an agent that you trust who has experience with offering insurance coverage to small businesses. Try to meet with the agent in person and ask as many questions as you need to understand your coverage. This can also help you to make certain that you have the types of coverage that will best protect your business while also staying within your budget. You may want to consider having both business income and business continuation coverage. Business income insurance coverage pays your business the profits it would have made over a certain time period. Business continuation coverage is vital. It provides coverage for such things as employee salaries, rent and other expenses. Review your policy at least annually, making changes as needed.

After a disaster, start by accounting for your employees and then call your insurance company to file a claim. Make certain that you have conducted a thorough inspection so that you understand all of the damages that have occurred. If your insurance company does not cover all of your business losses, you might want to consider contacting the Small Business Administration. The SBA offers disaster recovery loans to small businesses up to $2 million.

Draft a business continuity plan

Often overlooked by small business owners, business continuity plans can help your business to be prepared in the event of a major disaster. You should think through all of the worst-case scenarios that could happen and how your business might handle them. Consider what would happen if your key systems or personnel were lost. You should also think about how your business might recover if you lost a key partner because of a disaster. Make certain to include a plan for all of the worst-case scenarios, including succession plans in the event that key people in the company are no longer there.

Securely backup all of your data

When a business loses its critical data in a disaster, it can cripple the business or possibly even force it to close. Make certain that you regularly back up and store your most critical data. In addition to your computer information, you need to keep copies of your legal documents, customer documents, tax returns, major contracts and financial statements along with your business license. For digital information, you might want to store it off-site at a secure cloud-storage facility. If you do this, you may be able to quickly resume working by being able to readily access the information upon which your business relies.

Keep communication lines open

Make certain that you have communication strategies in place that you can implement after a disaster. This can allow you to quickly reach your customers, vendors, partners and employees following a disaster. You might be able to use text messaging, social media and your website to reach everyone. Make certain to give reassurances to your customers that your business is still open. Be careful with the language that you use so that you do not accidentally open yourself up to legal liability.

A natural disaster can cause severe damage to businesses and the areas in which they are located. If your business is damaged by a natural disaster, being prepared can make the difference in whether or not it will be able to recover.