Possibly the most important insurance you can purchase is Disability Insurance. Yes, you need health insurance. You might even want life insurance. But what good does life insurance do for your family if you are bed-ridden for ten years?
The answer is that life insurance does nothing. But Disability Insurance will. Nowadays there have been advancements in medicine that allow people to live much longer even while they’re sick. This may keep you from passing on to the next plane of existence, but it doesn’t keep your family safe from financial hardship.
You might be lucky enough to have a job that provides you with Group Long-term Disability coverage. Unfortunately for you, though, you can’t keep most group disability plans. The only way to go is to secure individual disability insurance – this is the only way to protect your most important asset: your ability to earn an income. This is an asset your family can’t afford for you to lose.
So if you have the opportunity, you should consider purchasing individual disability insurance. Three of the top disability providers are Unum Provident, Berkshire Guardian, and MassMutual.
1) Unum Provident: The underwriting for Unum is the easiest of these three providers. That means that if you aren’t in the best health, the standards for getting a policy without restrictions are lower than either MassMutual or Guardian. However, Unum is known for denying claims where MassMutual or Guardian would pay them.
2) Berkshire Guardian: The underwriting for Guardian is notoriously difficult. However, their premiere policy is very generous (if you can get past their vicious underwriting).
3) MassMutual: The underwriting for MassMutual is in the middle of the road. You won’t be flat-out declined at MassMutual where you might be with Guardian. But where you might be covered fully with Unum, you might get a specific restriction with MassMutual. However, MassMutual is generous in their claims department. As long as you are under a doctor’s care and can’t work, they will pay your claim.
For any decision so important, it is best to consult a financial advisor. Find an insurance agency that specializes in disability coverage; an insurance agent will best be able to compare the policies for you.
No matter how you go about seeing which policy is right for you, disability insurance is important in your plan to take care of your family should something unexpected happen to you.