Despite another record-breaking summer of brutal heat waves and wide-scale flooding, the majority of Americans say they don’t feel entirely prepared for a natural disaster. In fact, almost half of consumers don’t know what disaster damages their homeowners insurance policy includes — which may leave some with inadequate coverage.

We asked nearly 1,600 U.S. consumers about their natural disaster preparedness. In addition to discussing what Americans are missing in their emergency preparedness kits, we’ll also go over the percentage of consumers who consider their potential exposure to a disaster when deciding where to live. Finally, we’ll discuss the implications of living in a high-risk area on homeowners insurance policies.

In total, two-thirds of Americans don’t feel fully prepared for potential natural disasters, but that figure varies by region. Southerners (37%) are the most likely to feel fully prepared, while Northeasterners are the most likely to feel somewhat prepared (59%). Westerners, on the other hand, feel the least prepared. Here’s a full breakdown:

One reason why consumers don’t feel prepared? It may be because many lack key emergency preparedness items. Notably, 68% of Americans don’t have an emergency evacuation kit — making it the least prevalent preparedness item behind generators (73%). For a closer look at what supplies consumers do have, take a look at the graph below:

FEMA recommends including a radio in a basic emergency supply kit to receive critical emergency weather updates or evacuation information during a disaster, particularly because they’re built to withstand power outages or service failures while other devices (like cellphones) may fail. However, less than half (45%) of Americans have one. Additionally, 37% don’t have at least three days worth of water and 25% don’t have three days worth of nonperishable food set aside for an emergency.

Overall, just over a quarter (26%) have spent money in the past year to prepare for future natural disasters. Of this group, 9% have spent $10,000 or more, with men (12%) more likely to do so than women (5%).

Regardless of whether they feel ready, the majority of Americans (48%) will only start making preparations when they’re given advanced warning for an expected disaster. Meanwhile, 30% of Americans either don’t prepare for a natural disaster or only start preparing one day or less before a disaster is expected to hit.

Overall, 91% of Americans say they’ve experienced a natural disaster. Of the 91% of Americans living in an area with increased risk, nearly all (92%) have been negatively impacted by natural disasters. Power outages (79%) are the most common impact, but among those who’ve been impacted financially:

Gen Xers (26%) and Southerners (23%) are more likely to report income loss. Southern states have higher poverty rates than other regions, which may offer an explanation here. Households with low income are typically more impacted by natural disasters than their high-earning counterparts (more on that soon). They also tie with Westerners — where poverty rates are comparatively lower — as the most likely group to be evacuated (20%), which likely impacts income loss.

By income group, just 12% of six-figure earners have lost income due to a natural disaster. That compares with 27% of those with household incomes between $35,000 and $49,999 — the most likely group to report income loss. Although six-figure earners were generally less likely to be financially impacted by a natural disaster than Americans at lower income levels, they were notably most likely to experience home damage (32%) and car damage (24%).

In light of these findings, it’s worth noting that research indicates natural disasters impact households with low income disproportionately. An NPR analysis of FEMA aid registrations between 2014 and 2018 found that the homeowners with the lowest income who’ve experienced natural disasters receive about half as much to rebuild their homes compared with higher-income homeowners. Additionally, FEMA was twice as likely to deny housing assistance to lower-income disaster survivors.

Though some properties are at more risk of experiencing a natural disaster than others, the increasing volatility of natural disasters means homeowners should have some preventive measures in place. To help mitigate the potential financial losses you may experience, VinZant offers the following advice: