IMPORTANT NEWS...

Department of Business and Professional Regulation Urges Licensees to Prepare for Hurricane Season 2008

May 23, 2008

Tallahassee – Sunday marks the beginning of Florida Hurricane Preparedness Week, from May 25 to 31, and the Department of Business and Professional Regulation urges businesses and professionals across Florida to create disaster preparedness plans.  The state’s week will run in tandem with the national preparedness outreach week across hurricane-prone states.

“In recognition of Florida Hurricane Preparedness Week, I encourage all of our licensees to develop disaster plans for their business,” said Interim Secretary Chuck Drago.   “Preparing now will enable you to better protect your family, your home and your livelihood, allowing you to recover much more quickly.”

Business owners should take appropriate measures to protect their businesses and business records, including developing a disaster and recovery plan. The issues that can arise due to a lack of planning, such as a loss of important records and difficulty locating employees, can make the recovery process more difficult. 

The Department recommends taking the following actions when preparing for the storm:

• Retrieve all important business records from your place of business and store them in a water tight container in a safe place.  If you are required to display your license in order to do business, take it with you.  In the event your business property sustains damage, you will be sure to have proof of licensure.

• Have list of locations of where your employees are sheltering from the storm and document out of town contacts.

• Expect no cell or telephone communications immediately following a storm.  Establish essential staff for post storm recovery and have pre-determined locations for employees to meet when conditions permit.

• Prepare a photo/video inventory of assets and store it in a safe location.  In addition, if you have the capability, you may consider emailing the inventory footage to a web-based e-mail account, such as Yahoo, for easy retrieval.

• Ensure that your insurance policy payment is up-to-date prior to insurer cut off.

• Maintain detailed expenses for disaster recovery for possible reimbursement from FEMA.

• Have cash on-hand, as banking may be off-line for several days.

The 2008 Atlantic hurricane season begins on June 1. For more information on the 2008 season and how to develop your own personal or business disaster plan, please visit www.FloridaDisaster.org.

The Department of Business and Professional Regulation’s mission is to license efficiently and regulate fairly.  The Department licenses more than one million businesses and professionals ranging from real estate agents, veterinarians, and accountants to contractors and cosmetologists.  For more information, please visit www.MyFloridaLicense.com.

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