You had it all planned out: the meetings, the on-site marketing, the new leads you would find. Unfortunately, once you reach your business trip destination, you trip over your luggage and injure yourself.
Oh no!
Nothing is worse than spending time preparing for a business trip only to arrive and have an emergency. You’re far away from home and unsure of what to do and where to go. Stuff happens. But that doesn’t have to derail all of you business plans. If you find yourself injured or facing any emergency, take a deep breath and follow these simple guidelines to help you get through it with confidence.
Before the accident
There are things you can do before you embark on your business trip to ensure that you can be safe.
For instance, investigate the hotel you will be staying at. Before booking a room, do an internet search for the address and neighborhood the hotel is located in. Chances are, if it is in a less-than-safe area, there will be reports or other information that will let you know. Newspaper articles, blog posts and travel sites will let you know whether you should stay there or find somewhere else.
If you are self-employed, talk to your financial advisor before leaving to see whether or not you are covered for work-related incidents at home and abroad. If not, look for ways to get covered just in case.
Assess the damage
Depending on the emergency, there are certain things you need to do.
If you are out of the country and you lose your passport, then you should contact the nearest embassy. But breaking a leg or being involved in a car accident are different scenarios, so you should have a list of emergency contacts on hand for a variety of possibilities.
In the case of personal injury, seek medical attention as soon as possible if you think it is serious. Sometimes, especially if you are covered, you should contact a doctor no matter what to make sure there are no complications. If you are involved in a robbery or other crime, contact the police immediately.
When you return
Once you return home from your trip, you should contact a lawyer to be safe. Personal injury lawyers like m-n-law.com in Rhode Island specialize in assisting people to get any damages they should not be responsible for covered.
Contacting a lawyer can be beneficial in the long run, even if you are not seriously injured. Complications can arise months or even years from the date of an accident, and notifying a lawyer will get your information on record should anything arise in the future. It never hurts to cover yourself and your business to unforeseeable expenses.
If you have a primary care doctor, it would be wise to notify them as well. The more documentation you have of an accident, the better off you will be when it comes time for compensation.
Don’t let an accident ruin your business trip. Keep these things in mind and you’ll get through it!
This post was written by Niamh Pritchard. Niamh travels extensively for business, and unfortunately she has had to deal with it all over the years; cancelled flights, lost baggage and having her electronics stolen. She writes about how to stay safe and keep sane when you’re abroad on business.