Is Disability Insurance That Important?
That’s an easy one. The answer is “yes, it is.” DI is the most important line of insurance available to working Americans. So why then is there such an emphasis in this country on the marketing and sales of other products like medical insurance and life insurance while DI sales lag significantly behind? Don’t get me wrong, life insurance and healthcare are critical to the financial wellbeing of every person in this country and should be held in esteem in personal and business planning – but more so than disability income insurance? I don’t think so.
If your clients are between the ages of 18 and 70 and they earn a regular paycheck, they need at least 65% of their incomes protected with comprehensive “own occupation” disability insurance. That is the bottom line. At this time, we as advisors need to focus more on the economic safeguards of our clients and their families.
Unfortunately, most Americans are delusional when it comes to their morbidity and mortality. Many of us scoff at the idea of disablement affecting our ability to make a living. Yet, over a quarter of working Americans will be affected by a short- or long-term disability during their career. And only 31% of those working in the private sector have any form of income protection insurance. Why do we feel impervious to accidents and to the thousands of medical conditions and diseases that can harm the human body to the point of disability? That is simply human nature, blind naivete. It is up to you, the insurance professional, to educate and guide your clients through the proper planning not only for retirement, but throughout their income accumulation years.
The first two-thirds of our lives is when most of the problems take shape. We don’t save enough of our earned income. Investments and progressive retirement vehicles can bring promising and adequate results, but most Americans still don’t save enough for emergencies let alone retirement. One-third of us have no retirement savings, and 48% of us don’t save any income. How can we expect to financially survive while supporting our families without any savings or income protection? We can’t. We need personal disability insurance.
Disability insurance is available to most American residents who work for a living. If not through traditional insurance channels, there are sources of income protection for those who fall outside the realm of “usual” insurability, including impaired-risk clients.
The tools are there and the products are there to help protect your clients from many of the potential financial disasters life throws at them. Disablement is real and it happens to millions of Americans every year. Safeguard your clients by prescribing high limits of disability insurance. We can help. Contact our disability insurance department at (800) 345-8816.