"If you're experiencing a regional disaster, power and communications will be out for awhile. You don't know when that's going to be restored so you go from a very digitally oriented society—swiping credit cards and debit cards and those sorts of thing—to a completely cash-only society,” Teel says.
Members and the community at large may need cash for fuel, hotel rooms, and other essentials, he says. And your members might be especially vulnerable.
"Often, specific segments of your community can be affected more than others, especially the underbanked population,” he says. “In those cases you want to be in the community serving it. You don't want to have to shut down a branch on this side of town and force people to go to the other side of town because that's logistically difficult. Think about situations where public transport has been put out of commission.”
Agility, a CUNA Strategic Services alliance provider, works with organizations across the country, including many credit unions, to recover and respond to natural disasters and other unforeseen events that affect business operations.
Credit Union Magazine’s Spring 2023 issue features the 2023 Credit Union Heroes and examines CUNA-League advocacy priorities, board leadership, the impact of financial well-being efforts, fee-related compliance issues, predictions for the year ahead, and more.
