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F O R Y O U R R E T I R E M E N T

F O R Y O U R L I F E

F O R Y O U R B U S I N E S S

When Disaster Strikes

What’s inside

Be Prepared—Secure the Basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

Be Prepared—Financially . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

Financial Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

Disaster Supplies Checklist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

When Disaster Strikes

W hen disaster strikes, there may not be time to think

about your next steps. Often, decisions need to be made

swiftly. That’s why it’s critical to plan for the unexpected before it

happens. Having a disaster plan starts with the basics—you’ll need

to consider family, food, and shelter. Use this article as a guide to

help you establish a family emergency plan outlining basic, as well

as financial needs, in the event of an emergency.




2 When Disaster Strikes

Be Prepared—Secure the Basics When disaster strikes, there are many concerns that will immediately come to you.

If your family is not with you, you will be concerned for their welfare. Are they OK?

Where are they? What should you do now? To help you answer these questions in

a time of crisis, create a family disaster plan with members of your family today, so

that you are prepared for tomorrow.

Create a Family Disaster Plan

n Choose two locations where your family can meet in times of crisis. One location

should be near your home; another should be outside of your neighborhood, in the

event that your entire neighborhood is affected by the disaster.

n Choose an out-of-state friend or relative as a “check-in” contact for everyone to call.

n Post emergency phone numbers by every phone—make sure everyone in the

family has a copy and keeps it in a convenient location (cell phone, car, work,

briefcase, pocketbook, backpack).

n Keep fire extinguishers on hand and make sure everyone in the house knows

how to use them.

Build Your “Grab and Go“ Disaster Supplies Kit

If you are required to evacuate your home, you and your family will need to

be equipped with critical supplies and resources. Below are some suggestions

for the contents of your family’s “Grab and Go“ Disaster Supplies Kit.

n Water purification tablets

n Waterproof matches, lighters, candles

n First-aid supplies—bandages, gauze pads, adhesive tape, antiseptic,

thermometer, petroleum jelly, cleansing agent, sunscreen, tweezers,

scissors, needles, safety pins

n Extra clothing

n Blanket

n Non-prescription drugs, such as aspirin or antacid

n Battery-operated radio, flashlight

n Extra batteries; extra cell phone batteries

When Disaster Strikes 3

Did You Know…If you are in the 100-year flood plain,

your home is five times more likely to

be damaged by flood than by fire.

Source: fema.gov

n Manual can opener

n Food, such as granola bars or trail mix

n Tape

n Whistle

n Compass, map of area, signal flares

n Copies of important documents, including identification, financial, medical,

prescriptions, etc.

For a more complete list of other emergency supplies, refer to the Disaster

Supplies Checklist on page 7.

Be Prepared—FinanciallyMuch has been written and discussed about the prudence of having a family

emergency plan that defines where your family should meet, lists emergency

contacts, and calls for an emergency kit with important supplies. But planning for

a disaster goes beyond those critical components—you also need a plan for your

most important financial documents. Their future retrieval will be a critical

component when you need to make important financial decisions in precarious

times. With disasters comes a financial impact. Of course, the type of the disaster

and the extent of its impact on you, your family, and your home will determine

exactly how high that financial toll will reach. To be as prepared as possible,

it’s time to get your financial house in order. Consider the following, and take the

important first steps to being prepared financially.

Have the Right Insurance Protection

n Protect the well-being of yourself and your loved ones . Be sure that you have

the proper amount of medical, disability, long-term care, and life insurance. Work

with a qualified financial professional or insurance agent to determine the type

and amount of insurance you need.

n Protect your home . Be sure to have an adequate amount of renter’s or

homeowner’s insurance to protect your home and valuables. Ideally, you should

purchase full replacement or replacement cost coverage, which allows the


Helpful Hint…Building an emergency cash reserve account

can be difficult. Here are some suggestions

of how you can start saving today.

n Make a habit of putting daily loose

change in a jar. At the end of the month,

you could have $50 or more to deposit into

a bank or money market account.

n Make a sacrifice. Choose to cut back on

buying lunches (brown bag it!), going out

to eat at restaurants, or daily gourmet

coffees (brew your own at home). Put

these funds aside and deposit into your

emergency account on a regular basis.

structure to be replaced (up to the limits specified in the policy). Have your home

periodically appraised to ensure that your policy reflects its current replacement

costs and update the policy to include any home improvements. Make sure

you understand what the policy will and will not cover, and the amount of your

deductible.

n Flood insurance . Depending on where you live, you may want to consider

flood insurance. Visit floodsmart.gov for more complete information about how

to obtain flood insurance. You can also reach the National Flood Insurance

Call Center at 800-427-2419.

n Earthquake insurance . While premiums and deductibles for earthquake

insurance are high, it may be worth it depending on where you live. Work with

your agent to ask about coverage and determine the policy that is appropriate

for you.

n Riders . Consider purchasing riders to cover more expensive items, such as

computer equipment, artwork, jewelry, etc.

n Copies of your insurance policies . Include contact information for your

insurance agents in your “Grab and Go“ Disaster Supplies Kit.

Prepare for Disruptions in Income

n Quick cash flow . Put aside emergency cash funds, including traveler’s checks

and coins. Include this in your “Grab and Go“ Disaster Supplies Kit. Set aside

enough cash reserves for your family to live for a minimum of three days,

outside of your home and without access to an ATM or money machine. It

is likely that, in a disaster, the power will be down and ATMs and credit card

processing machines will be down as well. Banks may even be closed.

n Longer-term emergency funds . Financial professionals agree that a prudent

personal financial preparedness plan includes an emergency fund that could

cover your bills for three to six months. Be sure that these funds are in an

account that is easy to access, such as a bank savings account or money

market account.


Helpful Hint…n Consider storing originals or copies

of important documents in a safe

deposit box at a bank that is not close

to your home. This reduces the chance

that the bank will be affected by the

same disaster.

n Consider storing documents in a home

safe that is waterproof and can withstand

temperatures of up to 1,700 degrees. Be

sure someone you trust knows where the

safe is kept, as well as where the key

or combination is kept.

Include copies of your bank and money market account statements in your “Grab

and Go“ Disaster Supplies Kit. See page 6 for information about MainStay’s LifeFolio

Checklist—a tool to help you organize these important financial documents.

Looking for Extra Cash?

n Check for special disaster relief funds from federal, state, and local governments.

Please note that disaster relief funds may only be available for primary residences,

and may not be available for secondary or vacation residences.

n Check with your company-sponsored retirement plan about the possibility

of borrowing against your plan. Taking a loan rather than a withdrawal is

recommended, to avoid tax consequences. A loan, though, may impede the

potential growth of your retirement assets. Find out what rules and restrictions

apply, if any.

n Consider taking a loan or withdrawing some of the cash value from your whole

life or universal life insurance policy. Keep in mind that policy loans will accrue

interest at the current rate. Unpaid loans and withdrawals will reduce the death

benefit and cash value of the policy and may cause the policy to lapse.

n Speak with your financial professional or agent to determine the best sources

of cash given your personal situation before making any decisions.

Gain Control of Debt

n One key step to prepare for the unexpected is to gain control over any debt that

you may have. Paying down credit cards as much as possible will help ensure

that you have access to more credit in an emergency.

n A good rule of thumb is to pay off your credit cards with the highest interest

rates first. If it is not possible to pay off the entire amount, at least pay more

than the minimum required each month.

n Include copies of loan and credit card statements (include account numbers

and contact information) in your “Grab and Go“ Disaster Supplies Kit.


Financial Organization— A Critical Step to Disaster PreparednessMost people don’t discuss the location of their most important documents with

their family, or even spouse. In times of need, it can be difficult to track down

these documents, at best. At worst, critical information may be lost forever.

Often, it’s the events that happen to us that remind us how important it is to

access our key financial documents. When a natural (or other type of) disaster

strikes suddenly, most will not be in the right frame of mind to determine which

documents are the most important to retrieve—let alone where to find them.

MainStay’s LifeFolio Checklist

MainStay Investments has developed a simple, yet highly effective

tool that can help you gather your important documents, as well

as organize them. MainStay’s LifeFolio Checklist is designed to

be your central document for financial organization. The LifeFolio

Checklist will help you organize key documents, and then serve

as the most important document you’ll want to locate in a critical

situation. Experience has shown us that this may be one of the

easiest, but most important gifts you can give yourself and your family.

n Speak with your financial professional today to order your copy of MainStay’s

LifeFolio Checklist.

n Then, locate and gather your important documents (will, insurance policies,

retirement account statements, titles/deeds, investment and annuity statements,

utilities, etc.).

n Select a filing cabinet with drop files, preferably waterproof and fireproof.

n Complete the LifeFolio Checklist.

n Create a home filing system. See mainstayinvestments.com for complete details

or ask your financial professional for MainStay’s LifeFolio Home Filing System kit.

n Contact your executor/executrix using the sample letter found on our web site:

mainstayinvestments.com>Investor Education>Life Matters>MainStay LifeFolio

Home Filing System (under “LifeFolio“ section). See the “Letter of instruction"

link under EMERGENCY ITEMS AND CONTACTS.

n Update MainStay’s LifeFolio Checklist and your files at least every six months.

Helpful Hint…Make a copy of your LifeFolio Checklist

and most important financial documents.

n Include them in your “Grab and Go“

Disaster Supplies Kit.

n Send them in a sealed envelope to

a close friend or relative in a different

part of the country.

LifeFolio Checklist

Whether you are changing jobs, buying a home, caring for an aging

loved one, experiencing a death in the family, or planning your retire-

ment, events can send you into a document search tailspin. Just think

about how many documents the bank requests when you apply for

your home mortgage or the litany of current and historical documents

that are needed to settle an estate when someone has died. Because

we don’t tend to deliberately sit down and document everything

we have or might need to prepare for such events, unexpected

circumstances send most of us scurrying to collect what is required.

The LifeFolio Checklist will help you and your family organize the key

aspects of your life in an easy-to-complete way that you can share

with those close to you, as well as your financial professional, attorney,

accountant, and your executor. Experience has shown us that this may

be one of the easiest, but most important gifts you can give yourself

and your family.

Organizing our lives has become

a popular theme. However, if hard

pressed, most people will have a

difficult time locating their critical

documents when a major life

event occurs.

Your Name:

Your Address:

If you have any further questions,

please call your financial professional:

Name:

Phone Number:





First-Aid

q Adhesive bandages, various sizes

q 5" x 9" sterile dressing

q Conforming roller gauze bandage

q Triangular bandages

q 3" x 3" sterile gauze pads

q 4" x 4" sterile gauze pads

q 3" roll cohesive bandage

q Germicidal hand wipes or waterless, alcohol-based hand sanitizer

q Antiseptic wipes

q Large, medical-grade, non-latex gloves

q Tongue depressor blades

q 2" width adhesive tape

q Antibacterial ointment

q Cold pack

q Scissors (small, personal)

q Tweezers

q Assorted sizes of safety pins

q Cotton balls

q Thermometer

q Tube of petroleum jelly or other lubricant

q Sunscreen

q CPR breathing barrier, such as a face shield

q First-aid manual

Non-Prescription and Prescription Medicine

q Aspirin and non-aspirin pain reliever

q Anti-diarrhea medication

q Antacid

q Laxative

q Vitamins

q Prescriptions

q Extra eyeglasses/contact lenses

q Contact lens solutions

Sanitation and Hygiene

q Washcloth and towel

q Towelettes, soap, hand sanitizer

q Toothpaste, tooth brushes

q Shampoo, comb, and brush

q Deodorants, sunscreen

q Razor, shaving cream

q Lip balm

q Feminine supplies

q Disinfectant and household chlorine bleach

q A small shovel

q Toilet paper

q Mirror

q Diapers

Food and Water

q Water (up to one gallon per person, per day)

q Ready-to-eat meats, fruits, and vegetables

q Canned or boxed juices, milk, and soup

q High-energy foods such as peanut butter, jelly, low-sodium crackers, granola bars, and trail mix

q Special foods for infants or persons on special diets

q Cookies, hard candy

q Instant coffee

q Cereal

q Powdered milk

q Sugar, salt and pepper

Equipment and Tools

q Portable, battery-powered radio or television

q NOAA Weather Radio

q Flashlight/lantern

q Signal flare

q Matches in a waterproof container (or waterproof matches)

q Shut-off wrench, pliers, shovel, and other tools

q Duct tape and scissors

Disaster Supplies ChecklistThe following list is to help you determine what to include in your complete Disaster Supplies Kit.


q Plastic sheeting

q Whistle

q Small canister, ABC-type fire extinguisher

q Tube tent

q Compass

q Manual can opener

q Mess kits or paper cups, plates, and plastic utensils

q All-purpose knife

q Water purification tablets or filters

q Aluminum foil and plastic wrap

q Resealable plastic bags

q Small cooking stove and a can of cooking fuel (if food must be cooked)

q Insect repellent

q Heavy-duty plastic garbage bags and ties

q Medium-sized plastic bucket with tight lid

q Work gloves

q Battery-operated travel alarm clock

q Extra batteries

Comfort Items

q Games

q Cards

q Paper, pens, and pencils

q Needles and thread

q Books

q Toys for kids

Clothes and Bedding

q Complete change of clothes

q Sturdy shoes or boots

q Rain gear

q Hat and gloves

q Extra socks

q Extra underwear

q Thermal underwear

q Sunglasses

q Blankets/sleeping bags and pillows

Other

q Personal identification

q Cash and coins

q Credit cards

q Extra set of house keys and car keys

q Inventory of household goods

q Emergency contact list and phone numbers

q Map of the area and phone numbers of places you could go

Copies of the Following

q Birth certificate

q Marriage certificate

q Driver’s license

q Social Security cards

q Passports

q Wills

q Deeds

q Insurance papers

q Immunization records

q Bank and credit card account numbers

q Stocks and bonds

Disaster checklist taken from fema.gov. For more information on disaster preparedness, visit fema.gov/areyouready.

NYLIM-23010 SMRU-447647 MS372-10 MSWM41s-08/11

Not FDIC/NCUA Insured Not a Deposit May Lose Value No Bank Guarantee Not Insured by Any Government Agency

MainStay Investments is a registered service mark and name under which New York Life Investment Management LLC does business. MainStay Investments, an indirect subsidiary of New York Life Insurance Company, New York, NY 10010, provides investment advisory products and services. 1. Fixed annuities issued through New York Life Insurance and Annuity Corporation (NYLIAC), a Delaware Corporation, and a wholly-owned subsidiary of New York Life Insurance Company (NYLIC), 51 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10010. Guarantees related only to fixed annuities and are based on the claims-paying ability of NYLIAC, and do not apply to the investments distributed by NYLIFE Distributors LLC, which will fluctuate with market conditions.

2. Securities are distributed by NYLIFE Distributors LLC, 169 Lackawanna Avenue, Parsippany, New Jersey 07054.

Call: Click:

For more information 888-474-7725 mainstayinvestments.com newyorklifeannuities.com

This material is provided as a resource for information only. Neither New York Life Insurance Company, New York Life Investment Management LLC, their affiliates, nor their representatives provide legal, tax, or accounting advice. You are urged to consult your own legal and tax advisors for advice before implementing any plan.

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