Opens in a new tab

Natural Disasters: Recovering from disasters

December 31, 2024

No place in the world is disaster proof. Mother Nature unleashes her horrors globally and year-round via hurricanes, tornadoes, wild fires, floods, blizzards and more.

This special Natural Disasters Recovery Page, part of the overall Storm Warnings collection of Don’t Mess With Taxes blog posts about disasters and the associated tax implications, provides information on what you can do and where you can get help to recover as quickly as possible when Mother Nature turns into Mommy Dearest.

So, since time is of the essence when you’re trying to get your life back after a natural disaster, here are some posts to with ways to recover from the various natural disasters that many of us will face at some point in our lives.

Recovery

The Internal Revenue Service isn’t at the top of anyone’s list, especially when they’re trying to deal with a major disaster.

But in such dire situations, you should think about the tax agency. When you sustain any damage from a storm, remember that you might be able to get some disaster relief from the IRS.

You’ll have to itemize your deductions and in addition to the Schedule A, there’s more paperwork deal with, specifically Form 4684, Casualties and Thefts.

And the amount of your damages isn’t the amount you can claim. You’ll have to work through a worksheet to determine how much your loss you can claim.

But when you’ve suffered serious damages, any amount is welcome.

There’s also a possibility that you could get special tax treatment if your damages were caused by a major disaster. W(March 4, 2019)hen this designation is issue by the president via the Federal Emergency Management Agency, you get a choice as to when to make your tax claims.

You can opt to claim your disaster losses on your current year’s tax return, the year in which the disaster occurred.

Or you can file and amended return from your previous year’s taxes. This which might get you more money, and sooner, from the IRS.

The tax date choice is yours. Always run the numbers to see which tax year filing will get you the most tax money.

Don’t forget about your state taxes. In many disaster instances, states also offer special tax and other relief. You state’s tax departments can provide the relevant disaster information.

The Don’t Mess With Taxes posts below have more details. If you noted this page’s posting date of Dec. 31, 2024, you’ll also see that newer posts (listed first below) are after that date.

Looking for more or other disaster info? Check out the the separate Storm Warnings pages pages on preparing for a disaster, how to donate to groups that help disaster survivors, general storm stories and information and additional disaster resources.

 

 

Advertisements

🌟 Search Amazon Sports and Outdoors Books 🌟
The text link above and image links below are affiliate ads. If you click through and then buy a product, I receive a commission.

 

 

Share:

The More Tax Posts tab at the top of this page will take you to, well, more tax posts. You also can search below for a tax topic. 

Latest Posts
IRS sending refunds to families that claimed adoption tax credit carryforwards

October 18, 2026

Tax reform changes to the adoption tax credit meant some families didn’t get the new…

Read More
TAX-SAVVY WAYS 
TO WRAP UP 2026

It’s over! With October’s extended filing deadline behind us, it is now time to focus on year-end moves to reduce your 2026 tax bill. 

You’ll find ways to do just that on the Tax Tips page (see the More Tax Posts drop-down menu at the top of the blog), as well as the separate tax tip pages for each month, notably October through December. If you’re on the Tax Tips page, you’ll find a monthly list at the end of this column. If you’re on another blog page, you can head straight to the October tips; at the bottom of that tips page you’ll find links to all the other 11 months’ collections of tax advice.

Not to spoil what you’ll find in that tax advice, but it does cover such things as tax deductions for charitable donations, investment moves that could reduce tax due, and ways to max out your tax-favored retirement savings. 

Finally, as the year winds down, things get hectic. There are lots of other things to occupy our time, like the much more fun upcoming holidays. But don’t lose sight of taxes, since timing is key. To be of use, most tax moves must be made by the end of the tax year. That’s Thursday, Dec. 31, which also is the last business day of the year. 

So that you don’t miss that final tax year deadline, also keep an eye on the countdown clock below. It will keep you on top of just how much time is left to make important, tax-saving moves. (Note: I’m in the Central Time Zone, so adjust accordingly for where you live.)

Credits/Deductions
Disasters
Family
Filing and Paying Taxes
Politics/Laws
Refunds
State Taxes
Tax Brackets/Inflation
Tax Tips
Comments