Disability Income Insurance

Definition of "Disability income insurance"

Health insurance that provides income payments to the insured wage earner when income is interrupted or terminated because of illness, sickness, or accident. Definitions under this insurance include:

  1. Total and Partial Disability reduction in benefits if the insured is found to be partially disabled instead of totally disabled.
  2. Amount of Benefits many policies stipulate that all sources of disability income cannot exceed 50% to 80% of the insured's earnings prior to the disability, subject to a maximum absolute dollar amount.
  3. Duration of Benefits length of time benefits will be paid. Some policies will pay benefits for one or two years, whereupon the insured must agree to be retrained for other work. Other policies pay benefits as long as the insured is unable to do the job for which he or she is suited by training, education, and experience (often up to age 65, when retirement programs take over). Some policies pay lifetime benefits.
  4. ELIMINATION PERIOD (Waiting Period) period beginning with the first day of disability, during which no payments are made to the insured. The longer this period, the lower the premiums.
  5. Physician's Care the insured must be regularly attended by a legally qualified physician because it is necessary to assess changes in severity of disability.
  6. PREEXISTING CONDITION if an insured has a preexisting injury, sickness, or illness, most policies will not pay income benefits either for the duration of the policy or until a period of time (usually from six months to one year) has elapsed.
  7. Recurrent Disability most policies will not pay income benefits to an insured who is experiencing a recurrent disability unless the recurrent disability is deemed a new disability. Some more progressive policies define a recurrent disability as a new disability if there has been a break of at least six months between the first disability and the current disability, and the insured has returned to work during that break.
  8. RESIDUAL DISABILITY many policies pay for the unused portion of the total disability period, limited to age 65.

image of a real estate dictionary page

Have a question or comment?

We're here to help.

*** Your email address will remain confidential.
 

 

Popular Insurance Terms

Subtraction of a number of years from a standard table of life insurance rates under the assumption that a particular group-women-outlive men and presumably will be paying premiums for a ...

In ocean marine insurance, provision stipulating that upon the collision of two or more ships, when all ships are at fault, all owners and shippers having monetary interests in the voyage ...

Insurance company that does not utilize the rates and policies of a rating bureau. ...

Branch of knowledge dealing with the mathematics of insurance, including probabilities. It is used in ensuring that risks are carefully evaluated, that adequate premiums are charged for ...

Summary certificate of benefits issued to an employee in lieu of a policy. The master contract remains with the employer. For example, in group life insurance, an employee receives only a ...

Presence of other contract (s) covering the same conditions. When more than one policy covers the exposure, each policy will pay an equal share of the loss. ...

Recording and presentation of financial statements, such as the annual statement, by the insurance company. Financial reporting statements are used by the State Insurance Commissioner in ...

Payment of that portion of the annual premium by the employee necessary to cover the PS-58 cost for that given year. Any unpaid premium balance for that particular year is paid by the ...

Specific powers that a prospective insured believes the insurance company has granted to its agent. For example, if the insurance company has furnished the agent a rate book, application ...

Popular Insurance Questions