Disability Income Insurance 

What is it?

Disability income insurance helps replace lost income when you are unable to work due to a disability resulting from an illness or accident.

Who needs it?

Disability income insurance helps protect your most important financial asset – your paycheck – so it should be an important part of every family’s planning. Long-term disability is much more common than other unfortunate circumstances that are commonly covered by insurance. Consider the fact that you face a 1 in 100 risk of losing your home to a fire [1], but a 1 in 4 risk of suffering a long-term disability [2].

Despite the odds and the prevalence of long-term disability – nearly 11 million Americans are receiving federal disability benefits[3] – more than 100 million Americans are without private disability income insurance.[4] In addition, any disability income insurance you may have through your employer may very well be insufficient or contingent on certain circumstances (like worker’s compensation).

How does it work?

Knights of Columbus disability income insurance policies provide a monthly benefit amount over the course of a maximum benefit period (see below) designed to help replace the income that you would have otherwise received if you were able to work. You are free to use your disability income benefits in whatever way you see fit – just like you would with your own paycheck.

Knights of Columbus Disability Income policies also come with special features, such as the total, partial, or presumptive disability income benefits, which help protect against special circumstances. As an added bonus, our disability income insurance policies come with a waiver of premium provision, which waives your policy’s premiums while you’re suffering from a disability.

What options do I have?

Benefit Period

The maximum benefit period is the longest period for which monthly disability benefits are payable for any one period of a disability. The benefit resets once the disability concludes. You may choose from:

2-Year – Protect your paycheck with two years of disability income payments.

5-Year – Protect your paycheck with five years of disability income payments.

To Age 67 – Protect all your working years with disability income payments until you reach retirement age.

Monthly Benefit

Working with your Knights of Columbus field agent, you establish the monthly benefit amount that the policy provides, based on your income and subject to certain limits.

Elimination Period

Disability income insurance policies come with an elimination period, which serves as your deductible or out-of-pocket amount. You can select a 30, 90, or 180-day elimination period, after which time your benefits will begin to be paid.

Additional Features and Benefits

A number of special features and benefits – often called riders – are available on Knights of Columbus disability income insurance products. For instance, the catastrophic disability rider provides an additional monthly benefit in the event of a catastrophic disability, and the cost of living adjustment rider helps your monthly benefit keep pace with inflation during a long-term disability.

Contact your Knights of Columbus field agent today to learn more about our disability income insurance products, and about the safety and security that we can help provide.

[1] U.S. Fire Administration

[2] Council for Disability Awareness

[3] U.S. Social Security Administration Office of the Chief Actuary

[4] U.S. Group Disability Rate & Risk Management Survey 2012, Gen Re