Disability Insurance 

If you live in Sarasota, Bradenton, Venice, or the surrounding areas, you don't have to live without income should you become disabled.

Disability Insurance Policy

If you ever get hurt or become ill, living without a paycheck could quickly deplete your savings.

Since a disability will affect 1 in 3 of us, it makes sense to protect yourself now. That way, you’re protected if your rainy day lasts longer than you planned.

Disability income insurance can provide you with income benefits while you’re disabled and can’t work.

In most cases, a short-term disability will result in reduced income for you and your family. If you become disabled, how long could you pay bills and provide for your family with reduced earnings? How long will the disability benefit from your employer-sponsored insurance plan last? Do you have enough set aside to cover the additional expenses caused by a disability, maintain your lifestyle and cover everyday living expenses?

More often than we think, many people in today's workforce suffer a short-term disability.  Within 10 minutes, 441 people will suffer a disability.

A disability plan can help you prepare for a short-term disability. Benefits from your disability plan can supplement your income to help you pay the following expenses:

• Mortgage or rent payments
• Utility bills and other household expenses
• Food, clothing and other necessities
• Co-payments
• Medical costs not covered under other plans
• Travel and lodging expenses for treatment

A disability insurance plan can also preserve your hard-earned savings, keep your home safe from creditors and manage the extra cost of your injury or illness.

What are the types of disability insurance?

There are two types of disability policies: Short-Term Disability (STD) and Long-Term Disability (LTD):

1. Short-Term Disability policies (STD) have a waiting period of 0 to 14 days with a maximum benefit period of no longer than two years.
    
2. Long-Term Disability policies (LTD) have a waiting period of several weeks to several months with a maximum benefit period ranging from a few years to the rest of your life.

Disability policies have two different protection features that are important to understand.

1. Non-cancelable means the policy cannot be canceled by the insurance company, except for nonpayment of premiums. This gives you the right to renew the policy every year without an increase in the premium or a reduction in benefits.
    
2. Guaranteed renewable gives you the right to renew the policy with the same benefits and not have the policy canceled by the company. However, your insurer has the right to increase your premiums as long as it does so for other policyholders in the same rating class as you.

In addition to the traditional disability policies, there are several options you should consider when purchasing a policy:

• Additional purchase options
  Your insurance company gives you the right to buy additional insurance at a later time for an additional cost. 
   
• Coordination of benefits
  The amount of benefits you receive from your insurance company is dependent on other benefits you receive because of your disability. Your policy specifies a target amount you will receive from the policies combined, so this policy will make up the difference not paid by other policies.
   
• Cost of living adjustment (COLA)
  The COLA increases your disability benefits over time based on the increased cost of living measured by the Consumer Price Index. You will pay a higher premium if you select the COLA. 
   
• Residual or partial disability rider
  This provision allows you to return to work part-time, collect part of your salary and receive a partial disability payment if you are still partially disabled. 
   
• Return of premium
  This provision requires the insurance company to refund part of your premium if no claims are made for a specific period of time declared in the policy.
   
• Waiver of premium provision
  This clause means that you do not have to pay premiums on the policy after you’re disabled for 90 days.