When it comes to buying an individual disability insurance policy (DI Policy), the best price does not always translate to the best coverage. Make sure you do your research; investigate the carrier as much as you do the policy. Read every bit of fine print. Know your benefits.
For instance, many people become disabled, but a disability does not always last a lifetime. And, even if it does, it doesn’t always keep you out of the workplace. However, many times individuals who become disabled are no longer able to work as long or as hard as they once could. Or, they cannot continue to work in their field due to physical or psychological limitations, but they are able to work in a different field. This often results in lost income. However, if you’ve purchased a comprehensive individual policy that includes a ‘residual disability’ coverage, you may be able to collect disability benefits even after you return to work if your disability results in loss of income.
Something else you might want to be aware of is ‘integration of benefits.’ Integration of benefits means that your benefits will be affected by other disability benefits you collect such as Social Security Disability or Workers’ Compensation. For example, if you collect Social Disability as well as disability benefits from your individual disability insurance policy, the insurance carrier will reduce your benefits by the amount you receive from Social Security. This is called an offset. When purchasing an individual disability policy make certain it does not contain ‘integration of benefits.’
If you need assistance deciding which individual disability policy is the right one for you, contact DeHaan Busse LLP for a consultation.