Our hearts go out to the families and those affected by the storms and floods in Texas and Louisiana. Entire neighborhoods are submerged, belongings and pets left behind, and many homeowners hoping they have documents to rebuild their lives after such loss. Some had to be evacuated quickly and only escaped with the clothes on their backs. As the flood waters recede, many will be trying to recover, getting back to work, and wondering where they will be supported.
Unfortunately, Hurricane Harvey isn't the first major disaster the United States has encountered. Because of this, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has already compiled a list of tasks to complete immediately after these events including:
A widespread natural disaster not only affects households but businesses too. Your employer may be rebuilding and you may be temporarily out of work. At this moment, the highest priority bills are mortgage, rent, and insurance. For other bills, consider the following:
Creditors may waive late fees, offer payment assistance or temporarily halt your payments for a specified period of time while you rebuild. Whatever the agreement, document the conversation and ask for the agreement in writing. Be wary of any emails that may appear to be from your creditors but may actually be fraudulent scams.
If you are able to return to your property, take photos of any damage. If you are running out of space on your mobile device, download the Google Photos app for free unlimited photo and video storage. Document anything you can to share with your insurance company.
Destroy or take any documents with your personal information such as social security numbers, bank information and so forth. Protection of your identity is crucial at this time.
Assess your financial situation. Do you need to get a new job or will you continue to earn your previous salary? What basics do you absolutely need? A bare bones budget will be helpful to find some sort of normalcy without overspending.
Save all receipts and proof of expenses incurred during this time. This information is important to obtain for insurance and assistance.
If you need to extend your credit limits or open new accounts in order to pay for things, your credit may be impacted. The good news is that your credit score can be repaired once you get back on your feet. Be mindful of what you're spending and do your best to keep good records. Obtain your credit report as soon as you can to see how any recovery efforts affected you. When you no longer have to worry about where you will be sleeping or how to feed your family, do what you can to get your credit back to normal.
You can also add a 100-word written statement to your credit report to offer greater insight on additional accounts, late fees or recent changes to your credit. This statement will not influence your report or score but it will allow lenders to see that you were affected by a natural disaster.
As a consumer debt collection agency, BYL Collections understands that individuals are doing their best to pay their bills on time. A natural disaster is unexpected and, as we've seen with Hurricane Harvey, often the effects are far greater than anticipated. Communication with lenders and creditors is essential to reduce the stress of staying on top of things. Rebuilding is a process. One step at a time.
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