You probably don’t think about your vendors on a regular basis. But they are a critical part of your community’s emergency planning for any kind of hurricane or tropical storm and even more important when it comes to managing the cleanup and rebuilding.
Before the storm
• Work with your vendors ahead of hurricane season to make things easier if a storm does hit. Take a look at your contracts – do they specify anything about emergencies, including hurricanes? Do you know that you can count on your vendors when it matters the most?
• Build great relationships with your vendors on an ongoing basis. Referring them to other business is one way. Your professional property management company can help with that as well: if the company is large enough, they can leverage that size and volume of business to help your community remain a priority during a crisis.
• When creating your emergency plan, talk to your contracted vendors and ask about their hurricane emergency plans.
After the storm
• The first and most important thing to do after any major weather event is make sure everyone in your community is safe. Once that’s done, it’s time to assess the damage and get started on cleanup, repairs and rebuilding.
• After a storm, vendors will flood into the affected area as soon as possible. Having a professional management company on your side to vet vendors can protect your community’s fiscal health and assets.
• Your management company should have existing relationships with a variety of licensed contractors to deal with these matters. If your contracted vendors aren’t available, your management company should be able to help you find new ones. Your management team should also collaborate with your maintenance technicians to assess the damage and request estimates from your vendors, as well as oversee the work.
Vendors include insurance and financial providers
• Dealing with your association’s insurance company is a huge part of recovery and often the most daunting to board members. Your property management company can take the lead role, from start to finish, including initial notifications to preparation of records to coordinating with the claims adjustor, facilitating the process so your association gets the best possible settlement as quickly as possible.
No one wants to go through a major storm, but it’s easier with the right property management company on your side. A good management company will be there for your community, consistently communicating with your board and residents, assessing damage and managing cleanup and repairs, connecting you with certified, trusted vendors, and helping make the insurance claims process as painless as possible.
For more information on how manage vendor relationships in your community, contact George Sosa at george.sosa@fsresidential.com.
