When a Disability Strikes
It happens when you least expect it - a fall from a ladder, a skiing accident, a serious illness. No one plans to become disabled. As a result, very few people have set up contingencies to cover themselves when their income stops. Some people are under the mistaken impression that insurance plans cover long-term disabilities. In reality, some may cover short-term disabilities, but few cover long-term disabilities.
The biggest risk to your financial future is the possibility of losing your earnings due to an injury or an extended illness that prevents you from working. In fact, nearly one in three people between the ages of 35 and 65 will suffer some sort of disability which will keep them from working for at least 90 days. Yet this is the one risk that, for most people, remains unprotected.
Perhaps the biggest misconception people have is that the government will step in to provide coverage in the case of a disability. And that is typically just not the case.
Disability income insurance
Disability insurance is designed to replace a portion of your income. Some will cover as much as 70 per cent, and the income benefits may be exempt from taxes.
Work with a disability income specialist
Over the last couple of decades, a number of insurance carriers exited the disability insurance market because it had become so specialized, and, frankly, expensive to manage. If you consider only the top, most highly rated disability insurance carriers, there are only about six or seven left. Disability insurance has become a specialty, and it would be important to work with someone with expertise and experience, and access to the top tier disability insurance carriers.
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