Your car can be one of your most expensive and prized possessions. As hurricane season approaches, it is time to start to map out your plan to keep your car safe from damage.
Perhaps the most obvious thing you will think of is to move your car to higher ground, where it will be safe from water. Flood waters often rise quickly during a hurricane, and sometimes the high water will come in much further than normal onto land.
Yet water is not the only thing you should be concerned about. Winds can exceed 150 miles per hour, which brings the risk of flying debris damaging your vehicle to a level of danger that can be hard to comprehend. Sure, you may have seen news reports and pictures of cars demolished during a hurricane, but most of us are likely to think that it could never happen to us. It can, it might, and you should have a contingency plan in place.
Your best bet would be not only to move your car to a safer area, but also to have it garaged. A garage will protect your car from water damage to both the exterior and the interior as well as provide shelter from flying objects.
If you absolutely cannot get access to a garage and you leave your car outdoors, keep it parked safely away from telephone poles, trees, street signs, traffic signs and anything else heavy that you can foresee might fall on it. You should also use masking tape to cover your windows, using the same cross or “X” pattern you use for windows in your house. The windows may still break, but cleaning up the mess will be much easier.
Most often, with modern long range weather forecasts, people have several days to prepare, or evacuate. Even if you are staying home, and have a garage for your car, you should also make sure that you keep emergency supplies in it, and that you have the gas tank full, and perhaps even some extra gas in cans to take with you. If you have to leave at the last minute, your car will be ready, and the emergency supplies, like food, water, and an emergency medical kit will help keep you safe too.
One final note on protecting your car: do not forget to check that your automobile insurance is current and that it includes comprehensive coverage. Going over your policy with your agent ahead of time can help makes things easier should your car be damaged or totaled. It is a good idea to have rental coverage so you won’t be without transportation too.
These steps, taken together, should go along way towards protecting your car, and easing your mind.
