It is a painful story to hear and the odds of it happening to you are much greater than you think. It happens to people in their 20’s, 30’s, 40’s and beyond and often robs them and their families of their futures.
Typically the story starts with a poor check up at the doctor or a car accident. Suddenly, your life that was so promising is forever changed. Due to chronic pain, illness or loss of use of limbs you are unable to work any more. While good health insurance can help take care of the medical bills, if you are unable to work that means you won’t be getting those steady paychecks any more.
But, you can get Social Security benefits if you are disabled, right? Depending on your circumstances, maybe yes and maybe no, but this we know for certain. It will take time and typically lots of it. Recently a study showed that 7 out of 10 disability claims for Social Security benefits were initially denied.
Personally, I have never spoken with anyone here in Colorado ever not initially denied Social Security benefits, often in spite of sometimes tragic consequences like being confined to a wheelchair for life. Most people I speak with that were approved for Social Security benefits said that it took them 18-36 months before receiving a payment and about half of them had to hire an attorney to help them get their claim processed correctly and approved.
According to Frost Illustrated, the average Social Security disability payment is $979 a month. So, even if you are able to work through the system and get Social Security disability payments you may still find yourself in poverty.
While the odds of a house fire are 1 in 88 homes, 7 in 10 people will be disabled for 3 months or more. Moreover, 1 in 7 employees will become disabled for 5 years or more before reaching retirement age.
You can see why insuring your future income through disability insurance is so important. The cost of disability insurance is dependent upon your age, occupation, health and a number of other factors. Of course, you must get disability insurance while your health is reasonably good and before you need it. A qualified insurance agent can help you find good quality disability coverage.
