What Should a Small Business Emergency Plan Include?

By Bill Stilwell · Last reviewed October 18, 2026

The short answer

An emergency procedure tells everyone what to do when something serious happens: fire, injury, severe weather, a break-in, or a sudden closure. It lists current emergency contacts, puts people’s safety first, says who can close the business and how customers are told, protects records and devices, says when to call your insurer, records what happened, and lays out how to reopen. Federal workplace safety rules may require an emergency action plan, and employers with 10 or fewer employees may share it out loud instead of in writing.

Why it matters

Emergencies leave no time to think. A salon has a small kitchen fire, and nobody knows who calls the insurer or how to reach the afternoon clients. A landscaper’s crew member is hurt and the foreman doesn’t have the nearest urgent care address. A written plan turns panic into a checklist.

22.9.1 Emergency contact

What it means: current emergency numbers in one place.

How to do it: list 911, the non-emergency police line, the fire department, poison control, the nearest hospital and urgent care, utility emergency lines, your insurer’s claim line, your landlord, alarm company, IT person, and the owner’s backup. Post it where staff can see it and save it in everyone’s phone.

Common mistake: a list that’s two years old with a disconnected landlord number.

11.4.6 Emergency contacts

What it means: current emergency information for each person who works for you.

How to do it: collect an emergency contact for each worker and keep it private but reachable by managers in an emergency. Ask everyone to review it once a year. This information also lives in employee records (see 23.7 Employee Records).

Common mistake: keeping it only on paper in a locked office no one can reach after hours.

22.9.2 People safety

What it means: protect people first, before property or data.

How to do it: write evacuation routes and a meeting spot, who calls 911, and how to account for everyone. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) says an emergency action plan must be site-specific and cover things like evacuation procedures, how emergencies are reported, and alarm systems. Employers with 10 or fewer employees may communicate the plan orally. Larger employers must have it in writing and available to employees. Check whether an OSHA standard applies to your business.

Common mistake: staff going back inside for a laptop or the cash drawer.

22.9.3 Business closure

What it means: who can close the business and how customers are told.

How to do it: name who can decide to close and a backup if they can’t be reached. Write the steps: call or text today’s customers, change your phone greeting, post on your website, and update your Google Business Profile, Bing Places, and Apple Business Connect hours (see 14.1.6 Hours). Use special hours for a short closure. Use temporarily closed for longer than a week.

Common mistake: closing the doors but leaving Google showing you’re open.

22.9.4 Data protection

What it means: protect records and devices.

How to do it: know which devices and paper records matter most and grab them only if it’s safe. Rely on your backups (see 11.8 Business Backups), not on carrying things out. If devices are lost or stolen, follow 11.9.1 Lost Device.

Common mistake: only having one copy of key records, stored in the building that just flooded.

22.9.5 Insurance

What it means: notify the right insurers.

How to do it: list each policy, the claim number to call, and what to report. Policies often require prompt notice, so check your policy for its notice requirements. Take photos and keep receipts for emergency spending (see 10.8.1 General Liability Insurance and 10.8.5 Property Insurance). For worker injuries, follow 11.9.6 Severe Injury and your workers’ compensation rules.

Common mistake: waiting weeks to report because you weren’t sure it was covered.

22.9.6 Documentation

What it means: record the facts and actions.

How to do it: write down what happened, when, who was involved, who was called, and what was done. Take photos. Keep it with your incident reports (see 11.4.5 Incident Reports).

Common mistake: relying on memory. Details fade fast and matter for claims.

22.9.7 Recovery

What it means: the steps to reopen.

How to do it: list what must be true to reopen: safe building, utilities on, staff available, systems restored. Then reverse the closure steps: update hours on Google, Bing, and Apple, change the phone greeting back, and contact customers who were rescheduled.

Common mistake: reopening but leaving the profile marked temporarily closed for weeks.

When to get help from a pro

An insurance professional can explain what your policies require after an emergency. Your local fire department or a safety consultant can review evacuation plans. Questions to ask:

How quickly do I need to report a claim under each of my policies?
Does an OSHA emergency action plan standard apply to my business?
Is my evacuation route and meeting spot safe for this building?

Bill’s note

[Bill: add a short note. For example, a client who had to close suddenly and what happened when their Google hours weren’t updated, or how you would handle a SiteSmarty closure.] If you’d rather have this done for you, SiteSmarty handles Google Business Profile management, including urgent hours changes.

How I did this for SiteSmarty

[Date I did this:]
[What I actually did, step by step: my emergency contact sheet, closure steps, and who can update the profile if I can’t]
[What it cost and how long it took:]
[What surprised me or what I’d do differently:]
[Screenshot or photo to add, with private info blurred: the emergency contact sheet and hours screen]
[Result so far:]

Questions people ask

Does OSHA require a written emergency plan? When an OSHA standard requires an emergency action plan, it must be in writing unless you have 10 or fewer employees, who may get it orally.

Who should decide to close the business? Name one person and a backup in your plan.

How do I tell Google we’re closed? Use special hours for a closure of up to six days, or mark the business temporarily closed for longer closures.

When should I call my insurer? As soon as it’s safe. Many policies require prompt notice.

Audit check

Outline line	Question	Pass looks like	Fail looks like	Evidence to collect
22.9.1 Emergency contact	Is a current emergency number list posted and shared?	Dated, current list	Old or missing	Contact sheet
11.4.6 Emergency contacts	Is there a current emergency contact for each worker?	Reviewed yearly	Missing or outdated	Employee records
22.9.2 People safety	Are evacuation and accounting steps written or explained?	Plan matches OSHA rules for size	No plan	Emergency action plan
22.9.3 Business closure	Are closure authority and customer notice steps written?	Named decider and listing update steps	No owner, Google not updated	Closure checklist
22.9.4 Data protection	Are records protected without risking people?	Backups offsite	Single copy onsite	Backup report
22.9.5 Insurance	Are policies and claim numbers listed?	List with notice rules	Unknown	Insurance list
22.9.6 Documentation	Are facts and actions recorded?	Written record and photos	Memory only	Incident file
22.9.7 Recovery	Are reopening steps written?	Steps including listing updates	Profile left closed	Recovery checklist

Where this fits

Do this first: 22.1 Writing Standard Operating Procedures, 11.4.1 Hazard Identification

Do this next: 22.10 Training Materials

Sources

OSHA, "Evacuation Plans and Procedures eTool: Emergency Action Plan" (checked October 18, 2026)
Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, 29 CFR 1910.38 Emergency action plans (checked October 18, 2026)
Google Business Profile Help, "How to set Special hours" (checked October 18, 2026)
Google Business Profile Help, "Mark your business as closed" (checked October 18, 2026)

This page explains general rules and Bill's own experience. It is not legal, tax, or insurance advice. Talk to a qualified professional about your situation.