Disability Insurance is a little bit difficult to understand if you do not have clear ideas on what you are looking for. The legal jargon’s that most insurance providers use could easily confuse you. Unfortunately, these legal jargon’s might fool you into believing that you are covered in certain situations.

To help you in selecting the right type of Disability Insurance, here is a checklist. These are questions that needs to be answered and reflected upon.  These questions will reveal if the Disability Insurance Policy will work for you or not.

1. What is their definition of a disability?

Insurance companies have their individual definition of the word “disability”. They could qualify disability as a physical situation that prevents you from doing your present job. Some would also qualify disability as a physical situation wherein you cannot do ANY job at all.

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2. How much is the benefit amount?

There are two types of benefits in Disability Insurance. Some would provide you a certain percentage of your income as the benefit amount. For example, your benefit amount will be 10% of the 50% of your income. The more common setting is the fixed amount depending on your income.

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3. How long is the elimination period?

Elimination period is the time between disability and release of pay. The usually setting in Disability Insurance is that it could take more than six months if the disability is permanent. For temporary disability, elimination period could be 30 days only.

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4. How long is the benefit period?

If you have affordable Disability Insurance, chances are your benefit period will only last for 12-24 months.

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5. What are their policies in partial disability?

Partial disability could still give you the ability to work but in a lesser extent which lessens your ability to earn. The insurance provider should offer benefits for this type of disability.

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6. How will they replace lost income?

There are certain disabilities that will prohibit you from returning to your previous work although you have made certain recoveries. The Disability Insurance provider should be able too provide coverage if you have significantly changed your lifestyle and earned less.

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7. Do they have return to work assistance?

In the case of temporary disability, the Disability Insurance provider should offer assistance for easy adjustment at work. That includes changes in work place, training or and additional adjustments so that you could completely go back to work.

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8. What are their policies in recurrent disability?

The Disability Insurance provider should clearly state if you will have to wait for another elimination period in case of relapse after going back to work.

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9. What are their cost of living provisions?

For permanent disability, the insurance provider should inform you whether or not they offer cost of living adjustment.

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10. Is the policy Non-cancellable or Guaranteed Renewable?

Non-cancellable insurance policy do not allow increase in premium payments while guaranteed renewable will allow increase if they are done with a group of policy holders. These types of Disability Insurance policy are usually renewable until the policy holder reaches 65 years old.