Ask The Experts: When Fire Hits Your Kitchen

3/16/2021 (Permalink)

When you own your own business, you can't afford to be unprepared for extreme circumstances. If your commercial building in South Elkhart County, caught fire, for example, it would be helpful to have a plan for dealing with the aftermath. Here are some fire preparation tips that can help you handle emergencies as efficiently and effectively as possible.

Data Backup

Every important electronic document should be regularly backed up, and at least one backup copy should be stored in an off-site location. There is a collection of essential information you need to keep your business running smoothly, including:

• Payroll records
• Customer contact and billing information
• Supplier contact information
• List of inventory, equipment and essential assets
• List of the cost of replacing essential equipment and supplies

It is also advisable to store the numbers of fire mitigation experts and your insurance company with the copies of your important business documents. Then you don't have to scrounge to find the first numbers you need to call.

Insurance Coverage

Proper fire preparation involves knowing that your business is covered if something should happen. Review your insurance portfolio with your agent to make sure that you have covered all your bases beyond the standard general liability and property policies. 

Disaster Plan

Every business should have a detailed disaster preparation plan. The plan should include evacuation procedures, task delegation, relocation decisions and a business continuity outline. All employees should receive training on the plan as well as the opportunity to complete a test run to identify unforeseen flaws. Don't wait until the fire damage has already occurred to decide how you are going to proceed.

It's never too early to protect your business against potential fire devastation. Make sure you have protected important information, made an emergency plan and purchased sufficient insurance coverage. Sufficient fire preparation could mean the difference between your company’s survival after a fire and its demise.