Concerned about

2012-03-19
By: Advocate Brokerage

Recently, The news has been filled with stories of horrific home fires in Connecticut, New Jersey, and New York that have cost lives including children, destroyed properties, and left many homeless. Not so long ago, we at Advocate Brokerage were on the consumer side of the divide, having to deal with unreliable, costly home insurers — which is why we founded our unique organization, which is not just another insurance company.

We are a focused, highly skilled team determined to provide you and your family unmatched personal service that will afford maximum protection for your home against all potential disasters at a wholly affordable price. But protection, you should know, is not just about being prepared for “what-if” situations.

Advocate Brokerage is committed to taking the time and steps to prepare you with both a personalized plan for fire safety along with you #Homeinsurance policy to keep your family safe.

To guide your decision-making process, we want to bring to your attention a public service announcement video on fire safety from the Department of Social and Health Services in Washington State. We found this video illustrates why it is important to make a plan for your household to go along with a strong #homeowners insurance policy.

1. Draw a floor plan of your home and include all possible emergency exits
   1. Include all doors, windows, and stairways
   2. Include any feature that may help your escape like a garage, porch, or roof.

2. Show two ways out of every room, if possible
   1. The door will be the main escape route, but could become blocked in a fire.
   2. Windows are good secondary escape route.
   3. Make sure that windows are easy to open and everyone knows how to escape from them.

3. Does anyone need help to escape?
   1. Decide in advance who will assist the very young or old or people in your house with disabilities in your household.

4. Choose a meeting place outside
   1. Decide on a meeting place that is a safe distance from your home where everyone can go directly and be accounted for.
   2. A tree, streetlight, or neighbor’s home are all great choices.

5. Call the fire department from outside your home
   1. Don’t waste critical seconds calling the fire department from inside your house.
   2. Call the fire department from outside your home once safe using a cell phone or from a neighbor’s house.

6. Practice your escape at least twice a year
   1. Review your plan with everyone in your household.
   2. Walkthrough escape routes for each room with the entire household.
   3. Use this walkthrough to check your escape routes and ensure the routes are easy to use.
   4. Hold a fire drill twice a year

In a true emergency, every second counts. Using these suggestions, your entire household can act without hesitation in case of emergency and make it to safety.

A fire is, as noted, a traumatic event, but with a practiced fire safety plan and a comprehensive, personalized insurance policy, you will be fully protected in case of an emergency that adds up to genuine piece of mind.

Advocate Brokerage supports its local communities and is dedicated to protecting them in times of crisis. Share these tips and help make your community a safer place.

If You Have A Fire – The First 24 Hours

Should a fire were to break out inside your home, once you and your family are safe and the fire has been extinguished, call your insurance agency as soon as possible to report you claim and notify them if you will be relocated temporarily due to the fire. It is crucial to keep in contact with you insurance company as you begin making your claim on a homeowner’s insurance policy.

Also, if it is safe to do so, retrieve from the residence your identification, insurance and medical information, eyeglasses, hearing aids, or other prosthetic devices, and valuables, such as credit cards, bankbooks, cash, and jewelry.

For additional information on what actions you might take in the event of a fire, the United States Fire Administration covers this subject on their website.

Post written by DGI