Income Protection For Your Employees
Happy employees make for a productive workplace — but what happens when an employee is unable to work due to a disabling illness or injury? For minor injuries, workers might take a day off and come back to the office the following morning. For employees with more serious, debilitating injuries, however, their situation can be far worse. Workers who are temporarily disabled might struggle to pay their medical bills, especially after losing several paychecks. Without the financial support to help them through the recovery process, workers may take several weeks or months to get back to work.
With group insurance plans from King Risk Partners, employers can provide their workers with greater peace of mind. We have customized plans for any type and size of business. Contact us today to get a free, no-obligation quote!
What Is Group Disability Insurance?
Group disability insurance plans cover employees who become injured or sick and lose their ability to perform their work responsibilities. The insurance plan pays insurees a monthly stipend to cover all or part of their lost income. Disability insurance can be purchased individually by employees, but many employers offer long-term and short-term disability insurance as part of their employee benefits package, which typically brings down total costs.
Group Disability Insurance Benefits
Aside from all the usual benefits of group insurance, such as increased worker productivity and satisfaction, group disability insurance provides employers and workers alike with additional protection and benefits, including the following.
- Lower costs: Because risk spreads across a larger group, group disability insurance premiums are often significantly cheaper than individual plans.
- Pre-existing conditions: Unlike individual plans, some group disability insurance plans may cover pre-existing conditions for qualifying employees.
- Easier to obtain: Because employers provide group insurance plans, workers typically don’t have to go through heaps of paperwork to sign up for coverage. Premium payments are also more straightforward, as they are taken directly from the workers’ paychecks.
Insurance Coverage Options
Employers have a wide range of coverage options to choose from depending on their employees’ needs and desired budget. For the best results, we can help employers develop a customized plan that includes any of the following.
Short-Term Disability
Short-term disability (STD) is the most common type of group disability coverage. It covers a portion of the employee’s lost wages or income. Typically, compensation is a fixed percentage of the employee’s income. This type of coverage also has a shorter elimination period — how long employees have to wait after the date of injury or illness to start receiving benefits.
Long-Term Disability
As the name suggests, long-term disability (LTD) coverage begins once an employees’ STD ends. LTD often provides coverage for employees with severe, life-changing conditions, such as cancer and cardiovascular diseases. In some cases, LTD may cover a person until they reach retirement age. There is usually a long wait period for benefits — around 90–180 days.
Statutory Disability
Some states, such as New York, require that qualifying employers provide income replacement or similar benefits to their employees. This and other state-mandated group insurance requirements are also referred to as statutory disability. King Risk Partners can provide employers with customized, group disability insurance plans to satisfy their state’s insurance requirements.
Absence Management
Managing temporarily-disabled employees can prove burdensome and costly for businesses without the right resources. To help employers manage absent employees, we offer absence management services to reduce financial risk and simplify administration. Regardless of the size of your business, contact us to learn more about our absence management coverage options.