Part I – Is Your Income Protected?
If forced to go without your paycheck, how long could you make ends meet?
If you got sick or injured and couldn’t work, could you pay your mortgage, your health insurance, and credit card bills? Could you provide for your family and save for retirement?
To request a Disability Insurance quote CLICK HERE
The reality
According to a 2016 report by the Federal Reserve, only half of American adults indicate they have enough savings to cover three months of living expenses in the event they’re not earning any income.1 A 2005 Harvard study found that over half of all personal bankruptcies and mortgage foreclosures are a consequence of a disability.
We underestimate our value
Most people know they need to insure their Life, Car, and Home. However, they often overlook insuring their most important asset – their ability to earn an income, which for most of us is our biggest asset! For example, a 35-year-old earning $125,000 today with modest increases in salary would earn over $5,000,000 before age 65. Most households could not afford to lose such an asset.
We underestimate the risk
The chances of missing work due to an illness or injury are greater than most realize. According to the Social Security Administration, one in four working adults in their 20s will be out of work for at least a year before they reach retirement age due to a disabling condition.2
What typically causes a disability?
An injury at work? A freak accident? Although these events happen, the most common reasons for a long-term disability might surprise you. Medical conditions such as cancer, heart attack and diabetes are the main causes of disabilities. Other common causes are pregnancies, back pain and arthritis.3 Only one percent of American workers missed work because of a work-related illness or injury.4
The solution
If you are unable to work because of an illness or injury, Disability Income Insurance will replace a portion of your salary until you are able to return to work.
What can you do?
Give us a call! We can help you understand your current coverages, including any Disability Benefits you may have through work, and review your options to cover the financial exposure you may face.
Stay tuned for our next blog, where we address common questions and misconceptions individuals have about their Employer-provided Disability Benefits.
Written by: Mathew Kryder, MBA, CLTC
- Federal Reserve, Report on the Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households in 2016 (PDF), page 26.
- Social Security Administration, Disability and Death Probability Tables for Insured Workers Born in 1997, Table A.
- Integrated Benefits Institute, Health and Productivity Benchmarking 2016 (released November 2017), Long-Term Disability, All Employers. Condition-specific results.
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employer-Reported Workplace Injuries and Illnesses (Annual) 2016, Table1 Incidence rates of nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses by industry and case types, cases with days away from work.
