GROUP DISABILITY INSURANCE

Group disability insurance protects your employees’ most valuable asset—the ability to earn an income, even if they’re too sick or hurt to work.

ECIA Benefits offers both short-term disability and long-term disability insurance that meet your employees’ needs and your bottom line.

Who pays the insurance premium?

You can choose to pay for all, part, or none of the premium with group disability insurance. If your budget is tight, employees could pick up the entire cost of premium with voluntary short-term or long-term disability insurance.

What is group disability insurance?

Disability insurance acts as an employee’s personal safety net. If employees are too sick or hurt to work, they can rely on disability insurance to replace a portion of their income. That means they can focus on taking care of themselves, instead of worrying about how they’ll pay the bills.

What is short-term disability insurance?

If an employee is temporarily disabled and can’t work for a short amount of time, this benefit is used to replace a portion of the employee’s income. Examples of qualifying conditions may include the birth of a child, prolonged sickness, or recovery after surgery. Short-term disability benefits are paid weekly, and employees are eligible to receive benefits for less than 26 weeks.

What is long-term disability insurance?

Long-term disability benefits generally begin after short-term disability benefits end. Examples of qualifying conditions may include cancer, accidental injuries, and mental health conditions. Long-term disability benefits are paid monthly. The amount of time a person can receive LTD benefits varies, but usually coverage is provided until the employee returns to work, receives benefits for a certain number of years (example: up to 5 years), or reaches age 65.

Why offer group disability insurance?

Employees depend on their income for everything—the small things like groceries or a night out, and the big things like their home and car. What if an injury or illness affected your employee’s ability to work? Without an income, any money in savings may need to be used for things like mortgage or rent and daily expenses. Employees appreciate having the financial safety net that disability insurance provides.

Plus, offering group disability insurance enhances your benefits package. And great employee benefits can help you attract and keep quality employees.

For short-term disability, claimants receive weekly benefit checks. For long-term disability, claimants receive monthly payments.

Optional key features of disability insurance:

Choose from a range of features to customize the coverage that’s right for you and your employees. Flexible options include: benefit percentages, maximum benefits, elimination periods, benefit payment periods, and more.

How does group disability insurance work?

If an employee is too sick or hurt to work, they may be eligible for disability insurance. After filing a claim and meeting the policy’s definition of disability, the employee then fulfills the elimination period (the amount of time before benefits are available). Examples of elimination periods include 8 days for short-term disability and 90 days for long-term disability. Depending on the employer’s time-off policy, employees may be able to use sick leave during the elimination period.

It’s important that employees understand disability insurance covers a portion of their income—referred to the benefit percentage. This is the percentage of pre-disability income the employee receives (example: 60%).

Definitions makes a big difference

Disability insurance can be complex. That’s why it’s important to have a good handle on the contract’s language. Just one word or phrase can make a big difference when—or if—an employee qualifies as disabled. ECIA Benefits is committed to educate and answer any and all questions about disability insurance, to ensure you feel 100% certain before you purchase disability insurance for your employees.

If you like more specific information or need a custom Group Disability Insurance plan, please:  

• Call us at (800) 624-8976, and one of our ECIA Benefits Group Disability Insurance experts will service your immediate insurance needs,
• Or, complete the Contact Request form, and one of our ECIA Benefits Group Disability Insurance expert will contact you the same day, or  worse case the following day.