Prepare for Life’s Emergencies

Every day, events happen that can turn lives upside down. Maybe it’s a wildfire in California, forcing people to quickly flee their homes. Maybe a medical emergency occurs when someone is out of town, away from their regular doctors. Or perhaps a water pipe breaks, damaging mortgage documents, photos or birth certificates.

While no one can prevent every traumatic event, your financial institution can make it easier for customers to meet life’s challenges. You can help customers prepare for emergencies by providing them with safe-deposit boxes. No, not physical boxes, like the “olden” days; instead offer a digital solution, before disaster strikes.

What’s a digital safe-deposit box?

Individual, secure space

Offer customers individual, digital vaults to safeguard important papers, such as insurance information, medical records and treasured photographs, as well as titles, deeds and other critical  records they might need to recover from a disastrous event. Virtual StrongBox and our partner RecordLyf enable financial institutions  to offer their customers digital, private storage space that is protected by patented encryption technology. In case of fire, hurricane, flood or other disaster, customer’s critical information is available right at their – fingertips wherever they have an Internet connection. And unlike typical commercial storage services, which commingle stored documents, RecordLyf’s digital vaults are private; only the customer can access their files. For someone facing a significant loss, it’s a relief to quickly retrieve needed information so recovery efforts can begin.

Secure file exchange

Provide customers with digital vaults that allow them to securely exchange documents with you and other service providers, such as the insurance company or healthcare provider. A friend of mine was on vacation in Paris, when her elderly mother suffered a stroke. My friend didn’t speak French, and had a harrowing time trying to communicate with doctors about her mother’s medical history and medications. And although my friend had been designated power of attorney, that document wasn’t available. If a copy of that document had been stored in my friend’s digital vault, she could have saved precious time, authorizing medical personnel to access needed records in seconds.

Get affairs in order

Encourage customers to prepare, notarize and safely store important documents like wills, trust agreements, and medical instructions, such as DNRs, which can be stored in their digital vaults. Too often, people know they need to prepare a will, write instructions for handling their memorial services or, more importantly sign a DNR. But just as often loved ones die without these important papers in place – causing confusion and, frequently, family feuds. Offer customers a checklist of important end-of-life matters to consider customers, including a will and letter to loved ones spelling out their wishes. Keeping everything together in one secure place makes stressful events a little easier to bear.

Preparation is key

Of course, the time to prepare for crises is before lightning strikes or a medical emergency occurs. Encourage customers to store critical documents in a safe place before they’re needed – or lost. To promote full usage of your digital vault service, ensure customers understand the benefits – not just for the convenience of easy retrieval, but also the protection offered by a quality online storage program. RecordLyf provides a checklist of  the types of information that should be stored, including tax returns, insurance policies, identity documents  marriage licenses, birth certificates, wills and car titles.

Remember the old saying, “forewarned is forearmed.” The reason it has such staying power is that it’s true. Everyone knows life doesn’t always go as smoothly as planned. But your financial institution  can help lessen the frustration of customers’ unexpected events by offering safe, secure digital storage for critical papers – just like the physical safe-deposit boxes of old.

From floods, tornados and wildfires, to irritating hassles, like schools needing the kids’ inoculation records, having the relevant information readily available can alleviate some of the stress. Offering the means to be forearmed will delight customers and set you apart from the competition.

Ron Daly, President/CEO
Virtual StrongBox, Inc.