Consumer & Business Response

Disasters are unpredictable and can be devastating to a community. But there is a lot your bank can do to help prepare your customers for these events.

Help Consumers Prepare for a Natural Disaster

Disasters are unpredictable and can be devastating to a community. But there is a lot your bank can do to help prepare your customers for these events.

Share these tips:

  • Store important documents such as proof of identity, property ownership, insurance policies, bank and investment account information, and three years of tax returns in a bank safe-deposit box. Encase these items in plastic bags to prevent moisture.
  • Prepare additional copies of critical documents such as birth certificates, adoption papers, marriage licenses and the deed to your home for safekeeping and inform a trustee, relative or attorney of their location.
  • Print out key contact information for executors, trustees and guardians and store it in a secure location, either in your safe-deposit box or with a close relative.
  • Inventory personal and household valuables (take photos and keep receipts) to help evaluate replacement costs.
  • Include surplus cash, preferably small bills, in your home emergency kit. The kit should also include a three-day supply of food and water, a first aid kit, can opener, radio, flashlights and batteries.
  • Create digital copies, which can serve as a supplement or backup to paper documents.  Scanned or electronic documents can be uploaded with secure online backup services.
  • Contact your insurance agent or visit the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s website to determine if a flood insurance policy is right for you.

OSHA developing standards for employer vaccine mandate

Sep. 13, 2021

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is expected to release new standards following President Joe Biden’s executive order requiring COVID-19 vaccination and testing for private employers with 100 or more employees.

Requirements: Biden said OSHA will release in the coming weeks an emergency temporary standard that will require covered employers to:

  • Ensure that all employees are either vaccinated for COVID-19 or tested at least once per week before coming to work.
  • Provide paid time off to employees to receive vaccinations and to deal with side effects.

Funding: In a phone call with ICBA and other groups, the Labor Department said no decision had been made on whether employers will be required to pay for the weekly testing, which will be laid out in the emergency standard.