CULOCATE to assist in natural disasters |
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The Minnesota Credit Union Network and CUNA are pleased to provide all affiliated credit unions with a toll-free number – 1-877-CULOCATE (877-285-6228) – to relay information about the status of their credit union to members and employees in the event of a disaster.
The system was developed out of the lessons learned from last year’s hurricane disasters. The need to communicate with members has been identified by the CUNA Disaster Preparedness Committee as a critical element in planning for any disaster.
CUNA Strategic Services, in conjunction with its strategic alliance provider VoiceGard, will provide access to a pre-recorded message on the status of each credit union. At the time of a disaster, members can dial the toll-free number to hear a brief message from their credit union. You can provide new contact information or report to members that the credit union is not in a crisis situation. In the event of a disaster in our area, the Network and/or CUNA will send the 1-877-CULOCATE number out to the media. While this system will not solve issues related to member communication, it is intended to assist credit unions in delivering a brief update from a central location.
Although this number may be redundant to a disaster communication plan your credit union already has in place, it is helpful to have one central point of contact. We highly recommend that credit unions update these recordings as part of ongoing disaster planning. Each credit union needs to carefully consider how to communicate with its membership in a disaster situation.
Since no one is certain when disaster will strike, credit unions are encouraged to establish the 1-877-CULOCATE system as soon as possible.
How It Works
When a disaster occurs, CUNA is expected to receive notification from CUNA Mutual Group and/or the League(s) of any and all credit unions affected in each state and will activate the Credit Union National Emergency Information System. The system’s main greeting will be updated by CUNA to allow access for the call routing paths to occur within each respective state. In addition, CUNA will publish and/or broadcast the toll-free number with the proper media channels.
At the time of a disaster, a member will dial a toll-free number, 1-877-CULOCATE (1-877-285-6228), and listen to a top-level message, which will provide a prompt representing the affected state(s). Once the caller selects his/her respective state, the call processing system will prompt him/her to spell the name of the credit union. For example, it will say, “Using the keys on your keypad, please spell the first five letters of your credit union’s name.” Once the spelling of the name has been entered, the system will play back the closest match to that name. If the credit union cannot be identified, the system will list all possible matches in alphabetical order until the caller reaches the correct information mailbox. If the member experiences difficulty identifying his/her credit union, a general voice mailbox, which will be managed by CUNA, will allow callers to leave messages if immediate attention is required.
If the caller is successful at identifying the credit union, he/she will hear a pre-recorded message from the credit union with information on how to contact it during the crisis event or information stating that the credit union is not in a crisis situation. If a credit union has implemented VoiceGard’s Telecommunications Continuity Services, these calls can be redirected in accordance with its telecommunications continuity plan.
Copyright © 2005 Minnesota Credit Union Network