The warmer months bring increased risk of natural disasters like bushfires and cyclones and the Red Cross is concerned the majority of Australians are unprepared.
The Red Cross says 92 per cent of Australians don't have a written disaster plan. John Richardson from the Red Cross says disaster plans are not just for people facing an obvious risk like living in a bushfire prone area.
"Red Cross is encouraging everyone to be disaster prepared whether you're in the bush or whether you're actually living in the city because we know that disasters can actually occur anywhere. We don't often think about them in the cities but storms and flash flooding can create quite a bit of havoc in the home and so we encourage people to prepare for them as they would for a bushfire or a flood."
Mr Richardson says while protecting life should always be the first priority, sentimental items are also important considerations. He said, "We find that the sentimental items are actually very important because they're the things that people don't think about until it's too late and they're the irreplaceable things that you've invested a lot in over time and once they're gone, they're gone. They are the things that can help you make a new start in the unfortunate circumstance of losing everything, they're the things that provide you with a connection to the past and then help you just to restart so we do encourage people to think about those things that are important to them."
Campbell Fuller from the Insurance Council of Australia says listing the assets you own, receipts and taking photographs of valuables can be of great assistance if disaster strikes. He advises, "What really helps especially if a property is badly damaged and the contents are badly damaged or destroyed, is having a list of the assets that you have in the home, so the belongings that you have, the whitegoods, the furniture and any collections or large amounts of clothing that you have, helps an insurance assessor if and when things go wrong, look at the level of damage and work out what's available to the householder under the policy so that can help accelerate the claims process."
Mr Fuller says 80 per cent of people are underinsured so insurance coverage is something that needs careful consideration at least every 12 months. He strongly suggests, "Assessing your contents insurance annually and making sure that the nominated amount you have is right for the assets that you own is worthwhile and that also means looking at the policy and working out if you have high value items such as jewellery or artwork, whether they are covered as part of the policy, whether they need to be nominated as separate items to cover that higher value."
John Richardson from the Red Cross says taking the time to be properly prepared could save lives. Richardson says, "Important things are get in the know, get connected, get organized and get packing and so going through these steps will help you understand the risks that you might face. Know where you can draw some help from, do the things that you need to do to support yourself through these events and then pull all that stuff together in one place so that you've got it ready to go."
With summer fast approaching, the Red Cross says it's time Australians put in place disaster plans so they're well prepared for an emergency.
