What businesses should do now for business interruption
insurance claims as a result of Hurricane Ike
Our thoughts and prayers go out to our clients, friends, relatives,
and all others in the Gulf Coast region who have been impacted by Hurricane
Ike. As the initial shock begins to wear off, many companies are looking
to the future and determining the actions they need to restore the
region’s economy and the livelihood of their employees.
Besides the substantial repair and clean-up costs, many business operations
will be adversely affected for a protracted period of time, due to
the realities of a lack of raw materials, a scarcity of experienced
employees and interrupted sales and distribution chains, thereby causing
a significant loss of revenues and future profits. Obviously, your
first priority should always be the safety and security of you and
your families, and your employees and their families.
In order to maximize a business’ ultimate recovery for business
interruption losses, we advise our clients to create and maintain proper
documentation with respect to the amount, timing and source of your
losses.
UHY Advisors’ insurance professionals can provide valuable
assistance in preparing your business insurance claims. We
are objective consultants, with more than 35 years’ experience
dealing with business interruption matters. By using a UHY Advisors’ professional
to analyze and prepare your claims, you can focus on the numerous
other issues facing your business in the aftermath of this disaster.
We can also advise business owners and managers on ways to be proactive
and prepare for the effects of natural disasters. Our consultants
work with our clients to maintain and preserve documentation evidencing
all aspects of your business, including revenue history, costs of goods,
inventory, customers, and suppliers. Our technology advisory
group will also work with you to create sufficient backup information
to make sure your valuable business information will be preserved,
despite a catastrophic event such as Hurricane Ike.
Scope of services:
- Calculations of losses and claim preparation
- Documentation of repair/restoration costs
- Policy review and compliance
- Interface with your insurance company and managing the process
- Helping avoid early mistakes that might hinder or reduce future
recovery
- Filing partial proofs of loss to secure cash advances
Whatever course you take, it is critical to take the right steps in
the next few weeks to ensure you have taken all the right steps to
maximize your claims. If you have any questions, or would like
to meet with a UHY Advisors’ professional, contact:
Robert Lang, Principal
214.243.2903
rlang@uhy-us.com
or
Jeffrey Harfenist, Managing Director
713.407.3964
jharfenist@uhy-us.com
Disclaimers:
The above information is intended to assist you in processing your
business interruption claims.
We do advise that you also consult with your
attorney regarding possible legal issues.
UHY
Advisors, Inc. provides tax and business consulting services through
wholly owned subsidiary entities that operate under the name of “UHY
Advisors.” UHY Advisors, Inc. and its subsidiary entities offer
services from offices across the United States. UHY Advisors,
Inc. and its subsidiary entities are not licensed CPA firms.
UHY LLP is a licensed independent CPA firm that performs attest services.
UHY Advisors, Inc. and UHY LLP are independent U.S. members of Urbach
Hacker Young International Limited.
Links
For more information on business interruption losses, click here:
Business Insurance Claims
Recovery & Robert Lang’s
CV
FEMA
http://www.fema.gov/
Red Cross
www.redcross.org
Houston Chronicle
www.chron.com