What comes to mind when you think of disability? Some of us might imagine a person in a wheelchair, others might think of a person with crutches, still others might even conjure someone with a hearing or vision impairment. But common among all these imaginings is the fact that the person disabled has been that way since birth. In reality, though, people experience disability on an alarmingly frequent basis. Leaving the mobility issues that come with old age aside, one out of three people will be disabled for at least 90 days before they turn 65 years old. Further, many acquired disabilities can last years. Disability claims lawyers know these facts, and they know that, if you’ve sustained a disability, you won’t want to go it alone. Here are some facts about disability insurance and disability claims.
Where to Get Disability Insurance
There are several sources of disability insurance, each with their own advantages. These include:
- Individual insurance plans (i.e. private plans)
- These plans can be arranged privately through a life and health insurance agent. Their advantage is that you can structure the plan to meet your own personal needs—as opposed to a group insurance plan, which is “one size fits all”.
- Furthermore, while group coverage only lasts for as long as you are employed, individual plans stick with you.
- Group insurance plans (i.e. employer plans)
- These plans are provided through an employer, union, or professional association.
- There are currently approximately 4.6 million Canadians with short term group disability insurance and over 10 million with long term group disability insurance.
- The strongest advantage of these plans, of course, is that the organization providing the insurance will cover the premiums (whereas you pay your own premiums with an individual plan).
- Special purpose plans
- These are alternate plans that can provide for you if you’ve suffered a disability, although the plans themselves are not specifically suited to disabilities.
- They might include auto insurance (that includes coverage for disability after a serious motor vehicle accident), dismemberment coverage, critical illness insurance, etc.
- Their benefit is that you likely will already own at least one of these policies, so you won’t have to pay extra premiums for the added coverage.
- Government plans
- These are various government institutions, such as Ontario’s Workplace Safety and Insurance Board, national Employment Insurance, and the Canada Pension Plan, that provide disability benefits.
- Their advantage is that, no matter the job your hold, your employer is legally mandated to pay into these plans, thus automatically providing you with government disability insurance as long as you are employed (regardless of whether your employer provides group insurance separately).
Disability claims lawyers know that this hardly scratches the surface of disability insurance. And even with all these options, the coverage still might not be enough. If that’s the case, you need to contact disability claims lawyers as soon as possible. Along with any Toronto personal injury lawyer, they can get you the compensation you need during a trying time. Call for a free consultation today.
Sources:
https://www.clhia.ca/domino/html/clhia/clhia_lp4w_lnd_webstation.nsf/resources/consumer+brochures/$file/brochure_guide_to_disability_eng.pdf