Buying insurance to defray the cost of repairing the facility following a disaster would be considered what type of disaster-related activity?

• A. Prepare
• B. Respond
• C. Recover
• D. Mitigate

Answer: (D)

Mitigation involves reducing the potential impact of disasters, including cutting financial losses through risk transfer. Purchasing insurance before a disaster happens means that when damage occurs, funds are available to repair without draining operating resources. This decreases the consequences of a disaster, which is the essence of mitigation. It isn’t about actions taken during a disaster (response) or about restoring operations after a disaster (recovery), and it isn’t simply about pre-disaster hazard exposure or preparedness activities. Insurance shifts financial risk away from the facility, making it a classic mitigation strategy.