A long-term disability can prevent you from practicing your profession. Which leads to loss of income and the inability to pay bills, clear debts, and make investments. So, what do you do if you are suddenly diagnosed with a disability that has the potential of stopping you from working for several years?
The ideal way to protect yourself and your group of employees (if you’re an employer) financially in such a scenario is to invest in long-term disability insurance in Canada. In this post, we’ll take you through 5 things you need to know about long-term disability insurance policies.
So, without further ado, let’s get started.
1. The types of long-term disability insurance
Typically, two types of long-term disability insurance policies are offered:
- Any occupation disability insurance
- Own occupation disability insurance
If the nature of your disability is such that you can’t work anywhere, you’d be eligible for any occupation disability insurance policy. However, if your disability only restricts you from practicing your regular profession, you’d be eligible for an own occupation disability insurance policy.
2. The types of disabilities that long-term disability insurance policies cover
Go through any long-term disability Canada FAQ, and you’ll see that one of the most commonly asked questions is about the disabilities covered.
Long-term disability insurance policies can cover the following disabilities, depending on the extent of coverage that you want:
- Severe lung disease
- Neurological disorders
- Cancer
- Degenerative physical conditions
- Autoimmune disorders
- Loss of vision
- Loss of hearing
- Arthritis
3. The costs of long-term disability insurance policies
The costs of long-term disability insurance policies depend on certain factors such as:
- The extent of disabilities you want coverage for
- When you start investing in the insurance policy
- Individual or group premium
Simply put, if you want coverage for more than one disability, you’ll have to pay more. Also, if you get an insurance policy for a disability that you already have, the costs will go up. Generally, long-term disability insurance policies cost around 1 – 3% of whatever your annual income is.
For example, if your annual income is $30,000, your long-term disability insurance cost per month would be around $25 – $75. For employers, group premiums may be the way to go as far as policies for employees are concerned, as they are more affordable than individual premiums.
4. The relationship between employment status and insurance coverage
“Am I still employed while on long-term disability?”
The answer to this question can have quite a significant effect on your insurance coverage.
For example, if you have “own occupation” disability insurance but can work a job that’s different from your regular profession, you’ll receive benefits. However, if you have “any occupation” disability insurance, you’ll have to be completely unable to work to receive benefits.
5. The end to the benefits
The financial benefits of a long-term disability insurance policy will come to an end if you can rejoin your regular occupation in the capacity prior to the disability. However, you may still get some benefits depending on the status of your employment in relation to the policy.
For example, if you return to your work prior to disability in a limited capacity, you may get certain benefits if you have “own occupation” disability insurance.
If you’re an employer, you should know about long-term disability employer responsibility as well. Offering long-term disability insurance policies to employees on a cost-sharing basis has numerous benefits such as lower premium costs, consistent employee productivity, and an overall competitive edge.
Conclusion
We hope we have explained 5 things you need to know about long-term disability insurance policies. This is an important thing to consider now rather than later.
Need more information? Contact us and we would be happy to help!