- Contact your insurance carrier to file your claim. If you are leasing business space, ensure that your lease owner has contacted their insurance carrier. Make a list of the damages and document the damage by taking pictures or providing before and after images.
- Register with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Once a federal disaster declaration has been made for your area, connect with FEMA by completing a DisasterAssistance.gov application online, using the FEMA app which can be downloaded for free from your smart phone’s app store, calling 1-800-621- FEMA (3362) or meeting in person at a Business Recovery Center.
- Call or email EDPNC Small Business Advisors. You can call staff at 800-228-8443 or email sbadvisors@edpnc.com. Staff are available Monday through Friday, 8:00 am – 5:00 pm. Staff will connect your business to the appropriate organization for assistance. All inquiries will receive a response from a confidential business counselor within two (2) business days. Se Habla Español.
- Visit the Business Recovery website at https://sbtdc.org/hurricane-helene for updates on disaster declarations and services available to businesses.
- Meet or talk with a confidential business counselor from the Small Business Technology Development Center (SBTDC) or Small Business Center Network (SBCN) for one-on-one counseling assistance by calling 800-228-8443 or visiting https://sbtdc.org/hurricane-helene or www.ncsbc.net.
- Experienced business counselors can help you:
- Assess the financial impact of the disaster on your business
- Develop strategies for your recovery
- Reconstruct financial statements
- Evaluate options with creditors, including evaluating a business’ ability to repay a loan and make good financial decisions for recovery
- Prepare WNC Strong bridge loan and/or SBA disaster loan application(s), which often require detailed financial and tax records
- Experienced business counselors can help you:
- If needed, apply for a business recovery loan. Options include:
- Mountain BizWork’s WNC Strong: Business Recovery Fund – supports North Carolina small businesses and family farms as they recover. Bridge loans are available for up to $100,000. More information at: mountainbizworks.org/helene.
- U.S. Small Business Administration Disaster Loan – provides low interest disaster loans for homeowners, renters, businesses, and non-profits. There are two types of SBA disaster loans: 1) physical disaster loans of up to $2 million to cover uninsured or underinsured losses and 2) economic injury disaster loans of up to $2 million to help meet financial obligations. More information at: https://www.sba.gov/funding-programs/disaster-assistance.
- Be a diligent consumer. Price gouging – or charging too much in times of crisis – is against North Carolina law when a disaster, an emergency or an abnormal market disruption for critical goods and services is declared or proclaimed by the Governor or a municipality. In addition, the NC Department of Justice works to protect consumers from scams and frauds. For consumer tips or to file a complaint call 1-877-5-NO-SCAM or visit ncdoj.gov.
Remember, you may hear rumors about grants for individuals or businesses. This is common after natural disasters and often leads people to delay their own recovery plans. There are NO direct grants. There is only hard work, good decisions, ingenuity, good advice from experienced professionals and loan programs. Be proactive, be patient and be persistent in pursuing your recovery. It’s a long road. However, local, state and federal partners work closely to provide as much assistance as possible.