[August 07, 2010] Take precautions to protect your valuables during hurricane season Tweet Aug 07, 2010 (The Florida Times-Union - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- We all appreciate the finer things in life: a classic car, a boat, heirloom jewelry, a collection of fine porcelain, treasured photographs, a state-of-the-art laptop, vital papers, perhaps even your mother's fur coat. But we can also appreciate that we live in hurricane country, and that, at this time of year, a giant storm could come sweeping out of the Caribbean to really complicate our lives. Planning ahead to protect valuables from hurricane damage only makes sense. If you wait for the mandatory evacuation notice that comes when a hurricane is heading this way, you're too late, say the experts. "People should update their inventories [of valuables] periodically with photographs and/or videos, and written description or appraisal statements, to help insurance agents verify damage claims and compensation after an event," said Laura D'Alisera, a mitigation and recovery planner with the city of Jacksonville Emergency Preparedness Division, Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department. "People should consider keeping these lists and photographs in a plastic tub that can be placed in the trunk of the car. For those comfortable with computer technology, scan critical papers and documents and put them on a jump drive that you keep on a key chain or a lanyard, so that the insurance agent responding to a claim can insert the jump drive into a laptop computer to access your documents." D'Alisera said it's important to remember to take precautions to protect your identity as well. She said people are often preoccupied with other safety issues, and it's when they are most vulnerable that they are prone to unscrupulous individuals seeking to capitalize on misfortune. "Identity theft is a reality," said D'Alisera. "Safeguard your personal information as you would any other precious valuables. If you are evacuating, remember to stop mail and newspaper deliveries, which might signal you are away from your property." Most of your worldly valuables should be covered under your homeowner's insurance policy, said Brian Schultz, vice president of Jacksonville-based Cypress Property & Casualty Insurance Company. But some items may need additional coverage, and it's probably a good idea to discuss amounts and types of coverage with your agent before a storm threatens. Special policies are available for items such as art, expensive watches and other jewelry, even firearms. Another item worth thinking about is your computer. People store their photos and financial and medical information on their computers, which may be susceptible to loss or damage. "The best and safest way to back up or safeguard any type of information, photos, documents, etc., would be to have an online backup system," said Randy Elias, president of Jacksonville-based TechSync, Inc., an IT managed services company that works with both residential and commercial clients. "Personally, I subscribe to and recommend Carbonite, a nationwide company that offers a quick software download that runs in the background of your computer, constantly backing up your files as they change and sending them to Carbonite's servers distributed across the U.S., via a high-speed connection. It's a cost-effective method to retaining lifelong memories and documents that could possibly be unrecoverable." If you think you'll be able to haul your valuable prized possessions with you to the nearest evacuation shelter, think again. Most shelters are filled to capacity with families, leaving little to no room for your adorable, turn-of-the-century, antique Queen Anne chair. "During an evacuation, you need to take what is essential for your safety and security of family members and pets," explained D'Alisera. "A shelter is not the place to bring valuable items and expect to have them stored. If you're planning on storing furnishings, china, silver, etc., within the hurricane area of impact -- whether at home or at a storage facility, these items need to be protected with water-proofed or liquid repellent packaging." To make sure you have the proper containers to protect your valuables from hurricane-strength winds and floods, D'Alisera recommends doing research in advance. "Office supply companies offer a wide variety of flood-proof and fire-proof safes or containers," she said. "Look for the Underwriters Laboratories, Inc. seal, which means the device has been tested and certified for performance." As for your heirloom jewelry, D'Alisera suggests using plastic envelopes or bags and investing in a safe deposit box. joy.battehfreiha@jacksonville. com, (904) 359-4058 To see more of The Florida Times-Union or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.jacksonville.com. Copyright (c) 2010, The Florida Times-Union, Jacksonville Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For more information about the content services offered by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services (MCT), visit www.mctinfoservices.com, e-mail [email protected], or call 866-280-5210 (outside the United States, call +1 312-222-4544). [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]