First 24/48/72 Hours After a Hurricane
The decisions your board makes in the first three days after a hurricane can save your community thousands of dollars — and protect your residents' safety. Here's what to do and when.
~12 min readFlorida-specificCritical
Important first step
Before doing anything else, document the storm — take photos and videos of all visible damage immediately. This becomes your baseline for insurance claims and contractor estimates.
🕐
FIRST 24 HOURS
Secure & Assess
- Establish a command post. Designate a single location (clubhouse, property manager's office, or virtual) where board members coordinate. Appoint one point of contact for communications.
- Conduct a visual safety assessment. Walk or photograph all common areas — roofs, pool enclosure, parking structures, signage, gutters, and/unit balcony railings. Do not enter buildings that appear structurally compromised.
- Notify your insurance carrier in writing. Most commercial property policies require written notice within a specific window (often 30–90 days, but sooner is always better). Call the hotline and follow up with an email or letter. Document every contact — name, date, reference number.
- Activate your emergency board meeting procedure. Check your governing documents for emergency meeting rules. Many FL bylaws allow electronic quorum and voting without 48-hour notice in emergencies. Document the meeting thoroughly.
- Do NOT sign any contracts yet. Storm-chasers will be everywhere. Do not sign repair agreements, debris removal contracts, or any document promising quick repairs until the board has had time to vet the vendor.
- Preserve all receipts. Any emergency expenditures your board authorizes — tarps, security, debris removal — must be documented. These are reimbursable under your policy but only with receipts.
🕑
24–48 HOURS
Document & Communicate
- Complete a detailed damage inventory. For each building and common area, document: description of damage, estimated extent, and photographs with timestamps. Use a shared drive (Google Drive, Dropbox) so multiple board members can contribute.
- Request a site visit from your insurance adjuster. Once you've notified the insurer, request an adjuster assignment. Ask for a local field adjuster who knows Florida construction and building codes.
- Send an owner communication. Let residents know: (1) the association is aware of the damage and assessing it, (2) instructions for reporting unit-level damage, (3) guidance not to make permanent repairs yet, and (4) how to contact the board.
- Contact your property management company. If you use a PM firm, confirm their post-storm protocols and confirm they have your insurance policy information on file.
- Obtain a preliminary contractor assessment. You can have a licensed contractor walk the property to provide a preliminary damage assessment — this is different from a full estimate. Do not pay for this; many contractors provide this as a courtesy for larger jobs.
- Verify contractor licenses. Check any contractor you're considering at myfloridalicense.com. Florida requires all contractors doing work over $500 to be licensed. Ask for the license number and verify independently.
🕒
48–72 HOURS
Plan & Prioritize
- Receive and compare contractor estimates. Get at least 3 estimates from licensed, insured Florida contractors. Estimates should follow a standard format (CSI divisions recommended). Do not automatically choose the lowest bid — evaluate scope completeness.
- Review your insurance policy's additional living expense (ALE) provision.If residents have been displaced, confirm whether your policy covers ALE and what the claim process looks like.
- Draft a resolution authorizing emergency expenditures. Your board should pass a formal resolution authorizing specific dollar amounts for emergency repairs, debris removal, and security. This protects individual board members.
- Contact your county's emergency management office. Florida counties activate specific post-storm recovery programs. Your property may qualify for debris removal assistance, FEMA reimbursement, or other programs. Check county emergency management websites directly.
- Hold a full board meeting to review damage and next steps. Distribute a damage report, review the three estimates, discuss insurance claim status, and vote on how to proceed with repairs. All decisions should be documented in meeting minutes.
- Consider a professional estimate review. Before signing any contract over $25,000, consider having the estimate independently reviewed. EstimateVerify provides line-by-line analysis against RSMeans data and Florida Building Code.
Have an estimate from a contractor?
Upload any contractor estimate for an independent, expert line-by-line analysis. Florida Building Code compliance, RSMeans pricing benchmarks, scope completeness — starting at $49.
Get My Estimate Reviewed →