Disability insurance pays you a portion of your salary if you get sick or hurt and can’t work. If you depend on your paycheck to keep a roof over your head and put food on your family’s table, consider adding disability insurance to the coverage you already have. As we tell our clients, your biggest asset isn’t actually your home or car – it’s your ability to keep working and earn a paycheck. Owning your own disability policy gives you a backup in case you can’t keep doing that work.
➡️ How much is disability insurance? We’ll explain below – or you can click the button to request a customized quote!
Request a Free QuoteWhat Do I Need to Know to Buy a Disability Policy?
Before we talk about what it costs, let’s go over what it does. First, you choose a policy to buy. We’re here to help with that! Call us at 800-823-4852 to get a head start. Or keep reading to find out what options you’ll have to choose from.
Your first option is how much income you want to replace. Based on the provider and policy you choose, your coverage will pay you between 40% and 70% percent of your pre-tax income if you become disabled. The most common replacement amount is 60% of your pre-tax income. However, because the amount of income you replace affects the policy’s cost, you could dial that down a bit to ensure your policy fits your current budget.
Something else to keep in mind: every insurer has a list of covered conditions. These conditions cover common illnesses and injuries, including heart disease, heart attack, diabetes, cancer, muscle and spine injuries, and a whole lot more. While most covered conditions will be the same across multiple insurers, those lists aren’t 100% identical. Some insurers pay fewer benefits for mental health conditions, for example. If there’s a particular type of illness or injury you’re worried about, be sure to tell us when you call. We’ll make sure you get quotes from insurers who offer the best benefits for that specific injury or illness.
One more component to consider is the waiting period. This is the length of time between the time you experience a disability and the time your policy starts paying you. All policies have a waiting period, but they vary from 30 days to 6 months. It all depends on the policy type, insurer, and your selection from the waiting periods they offer. A longer waiting period costs less, for example, so this is one way you can tweak the price of your policy to fit your budget.
➡️ How much is disability insurance? Click the button below to request a customized quote!
Request a Free QuoteHow Much Is Disability Insurance?
Okay, let’s get down to details.
As a general rule, expect disability insurance to cost between 1% and 3% of your annual salary.
Here are a few examples of how that cost would break down by salary:
$40,000 salary: $400 - $1200 per year
$50,000 salary: $500 - $1,500 per year
$60,000 salary: $600 - $1,800 per year
$75,000 salary: $750 - $2,250 per year
$100,000 salary: $1,000 - $3,000 per year
$200,000 salary: $2,000 - $6,000 per year
Of course, that variance in cost comes from the options you select for your policy as well as a few details about you, the policy owner. Much like life insurance, there is no standard or flat-rate pricing. That’s why it’s easiest to get an accurate quote when you call and talk to an agent. Call us at 800-823-4852 and we’ll ask you a few simple questions to get started. Then, we’ll give you an exact quote based on your salary, your needs, and what fits your budget.
➡️ How much is disability insurance? Click the button below to request a customized quote!
Request a Free QuoteFactors That Affect Your Policy’s Cost
Details about the Policy
- How much income you want replaced. As we mentioned above, there are options in terms of how much pre-tax income you want to replace. If you choose a lower amount, like 40%, that will cost less than replacing 60%. Once you get your initial quote, we can change this amount to see what it would cost to replace more or less of your income, to help you make an educated decision about disability coverage.
- How long you want to receive benefits. Another aspect you control is how long you want your policy to continue to pay you. Common options include 5 years, 10 years, or until retirement age. As you’d expect, getting paid for a longer period of time will add to the cost of your policy.
- Waiting period length. The longer your waiting period, the less your policy will cost. You have to balance this consideration against the other cash you have to pull from if you were disabled and couldn’t earn a paycheck. Have a lot of savings to pull from? You may want to lengthen the waiting period to save on policy costs. But if you don’t have savings or other working family members who can contribute to your household expenses, you’ll probably want a shorter waiting period to get those benefits coming to you faster.
- Riders. Riders are policy add-ons that you can select for an extra charge. For example, you might choose to add a rider that pays a portion of your disability benefits you have a partial recovery that allows you to work part-time, but not as much as you used to. Ask your agent about the riders available – these may help you make a decision when it’s time to buy.
Details about You
- Age. Disability insurance is cheapest when you’re young. As you age, the odds of becoming sick or hurt go up, and insurers want you to pay more as your odds increase. That’s one good reason to get a free quote right now – you’ll never be younger than you are at this exact second.
- Gender. Like life insurance, your gender affects the rate you’ll pay for coverage. In general, men tend to pay more as they get older.
- Job. Is your job dangerous? If so, you can expect to pay more than someone with a job that’s perceived to be safer (like an office job).
- Current health. Do you have any pre-existing conditions? If so, there may be an exclusion on disabilities that develop from these conditions.
- Hobbies. Do you have any dangerous hobbies? If you go mountain climbing, cliff diving, skydiving, or rally racing on weekends, those things increase your chances of experiencing a disability and the insurer will ask you to pay more as a result.
Here’s the bottom line: do people depend on your income for shelter, food, utilities, school supplies, and more? If the answer is “yes,” you need disability insurance. But if you’re the type who’d rather talk to a real person about this before making a decision, we’re here for you! Call us at 800-823-4852 and ask us all your questions about disability coverage.
➡️ How much is disability insurance? Click the button below to request a customized quote!
Request a Free Quote