Wild Fires - What Now?

Questions Yet to Be Asked

For those who survived the first round, having insurance, getting the family out......will come the following questions.

How fast will we get paid?
An important question, where are all the people going to be housed during reconstruction, and don't just consider the burned to the ground houses......for those of you who know.....smoke damage means the house might as well have burnt to the ground, you can't live in them.

What do you mean we did not have enough insurance?
One of the most alarming things to discover on a claim, is you do not have the coverage you think you have. Insurance professionals tell me, many people under insure or do not adjust coverage to meet increased value. How much has your home gone up in value? What about the replacement cost of all your furniture, or do you have the garage sell price for coverage?

How do we "prove" our claim?
You may be surprised at what it takes to prove your claim, and if you can't how long it will take to settle. You could have $2,000 in bedding gone......no proof, no coverage, no payment, and that is one article.

Who is going to loan you money to get by?
The bank who still expects it's mortgage payment? The credit card company that still expects their payment? What will be the demand on local rental housing, any price increases there?

Can you get insurance to rebuild?
Many times insurers will not re-insure after a huge loss, and if they do the rates will be impossible to swallow. What will it cost to rebuild.....think the trades will be in high demand?

These are just a few of the tough questions.....but if you lived in a potential fire danger area, questions you should have thought about before.

WHAT QUESTIONS SHOULD YOU BE ASKING NOW WITH YOUR RISKS, WHAT IF YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT RISKS YOU FACE?

Our course on Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery will help your business answer these questions.

The Age of Turbulence

I have just started Alan Greenspan's new book, The Age of Turbulence, adventures in a new world.

The introduction itself is revealing, he starts on September 11, 2001 and describes the impact on the world and US economy and what steps were taken to protect the financial markets. He then goes on to describe in broad terms the fact that economies are now global, that countries with low standards of living have higher savings rate then developed countries, and therefore have more capital to deploy, whereas developed countries now have extraordinarily low savings rates, and less capital to deploy. When capital is deployed in lower developed countries by the way of credit it sparks demand, which has an exponential effect on those economies.

For example in an undeveloped country I can now borrow money for a house, that means I will need a fridge, a stove, etc, which will spark more economic activity for all. So some of the biggest payoffs for capital will come in less developed countries. So where do you think capital will flow?

What he is saying in a broad sense is this will create and sweeping changes in the world and its value chains, the changes will be rapid, hence his title "The age of Turbulence". We all remember the impact of his statement on "irrational exuberance" in the US market.

Turbulence means rapid change, your business will need to know how to deal with rapid change and identify what can threaten you business early on. This should be an excellent read.

Food Recall becomes Bankruptcy for Topps Meats

BANKRUPT

Tying together my earlier and recent posts on management priorities and product recalls comes an unfortunate real life example.

In one week Topps has gone from the largest US producer of frozen hamburgers to bankruptcy under the weight of the recall of beef for E coli for what inspectors called inadequate protections at their plant.

The C.E.O. called the event "tragic."

I agree.