“Yes, Preppers Should Have Insurance Policies.”

Contributed by Shawn (aka The City Cousin)
(Shawn will be writing a series of posts about prepping in an urban environment.)

I’ve had a varied background, career wise, over the past forty years. My first job, after graduating from college, was as a Welfare Fraud Investigator for the State of Utah. This hadn’t been my plan. Initially I was in a prelaw program via a political science major, then two quarters before graduation, I changed my major to Spanish as I was offered a Teaching Fellowship in the Language Department. My goal was to attend grad school and become a Spanish professor. Unfortunately, this is when quotas were first being developed for racial and gender balance in organizations. I saw the handwriting on the wall (not being a Latino or a woman) that future job prospects in that field would be minimal, so I started interviewing for any job. Which brought me to two conclusions that I’ve found to be true: first, if you don’t know where you’re going, it doesn’t matter which road you take; and second, journalism classes do pay off.

In the interview for the welfare investigator position I was asked what I felt was needed to prepare a good investigation summary. I flipped through my ‘mental rolodex’ (for those of you under 30, a rolodex is a round file that we used for phone numbers, addresses, etc. Google it and you will be amused at that technology) and came up with those questions any article should answer: Who, What, Where, When and How. I got the job.

When I started thinking about getting more prepared, I began with a list of perils and what I needed to do to prepare for them. Then I applied my questions: Who, What, Where, When and How. Living in Seattle we have some unique perils, as well the perils we all face.

Peril is an insurance term which describes those events or risks a policy covers (yep, I worked for an insurance company along the way as well). I believe, since fortunately most perils are not catastrophic in nature, all preppers should begin with good insurance coverage. I realize this is a different approach to prepping. But a homeowners/renters policy provides (prepares) us with coverage for the perils of fire, theft, wind damage, lightning strikes, etc. It has liability coverage, which covers you in the event someone is injured on your premises, or sues you for libel/slander. There is also coverage for ‘loss of use of premises’, which covers temporary housing and living expenses. As a prepper, take the time and make sure you understand what your insurance policy covers, as the perils and benefits depend on your state, your insurance company, and policy type. Earthquake and earth slides tend to be coverage you have to add to your standard policy. Flood insurance is purchased through the federal government. Insurance works as a tool to manage risks by transferring to the insurance company coverage for a loss; your deductible is the risk you are willing to cover in a loss (the higher the deductible the more of the risk you assume).

Prepping is another form of insurance, and perils is another word for disasters. So what are the perils I have defined and, other than having adequate insurance, what have I done to prepare for them? Living alone, in a 500 square foot one bedroom apartment, it can be an interesting process. Next month I will share with you what I have come up with and the resources I’ve used. With preparation we define the road we are taking and we know where we are going.

The City Cousin’s Bio
I come by prepping by growing up watching the example my father set; he was always prepared for whatever situation would arise. Now, as a single man living and working in Seattle, I have opted to live near downtown in a small apartment. For me this is a comfortable space; trying to be “green” it has reduced my use of resources from electricity to gas for my truck. With limited space, I have reviewed what I can reasonably be prepared for in my urban environment.

(Friday: Momma Bear’s March Preps, instead of my weekly summary the last Friday of each month Momma Bear will sum up what she and her family did that month to prep.)