Half of Small Businesses in U.S. Not Prepared

According to a recent survey, more than half of small businesses in the United States have not taken any measures to prepare against natural disasters. The survey, conducted by FedEx Corp and the American Red Cross, found that 51 percent of small businesses have never practiced evacuations or other emergency drills. Forty-seven percent have not assigned or communicated employee’s roles for the business in a disaster.

"Further, while 40 percent of small businesses do not believe they could fully recover within six months if their business was completely destroyed in a disaster, fewer than one third (29 percent) of those surveyed are prepared if a disaster disrupts their business for just one month. Additionally, the majority of small businesses may not fully realize how a disaster could impact one of their greatest resources--their employees. Seventy-seven percent have not taken steps to encourage employees to create disaster preparedness plans for their homes and families."

Having natural disasters affect small businesses in the U.S. could have a huge impact on our economy. After Hurricane Katrina, the largest natural disaster in U.S. history, more than $2.3 billion of small business loans were made to about 22,000 companies in the area. "Many small businesses put off disaster preparation because of concerns about lack of resources or expertise," said Rose Flenorl, manager, Global Citizenship, FedEx Services. "But some simple, inexpensive steps can go a long way toward helping businesses be prepared if disaster strikes. The survey found that 77 percent of small businesses would be more likely to take action to prepare for disaster if they were provided with educational materials." Previously, we wrote about ways that your business could prepare for an earthquake or other natural disaster. Please take time to prepare your business, along with your family.