UnumProvident Corp. is
offering a unique disability product that allows for flexible coverage
changes, including a built-in option to convert the policy's income
protection benefit to long term care insurance.
The "Income Series" provides policyholders with a choice of three packages: Income I, Income II, and Income III.
Each
package contains income replacement and return-to-work benefits, as
well as the option to transform the product into long term care
insurance when the owner is between the ages of 60 and 70. For customers looking for the highest degree of income
protection, Income III provides total disability benefits for the
entire benefit period if the policyholder is unable to continue to work
in his or her profession, even though he or she is able to work in an
alternative occupation.
| Policyholders will be able to move from one package to another as their needs change. |
According
to Unum Vice President Rick Magro, policyholders will be able to move
from one package to another as their needs change, while keeping the
cost and, in some cases, the underwriting advantages of purchasing core
coverage at an early age.
For example, if the Income
Series I policyholder elects to convert from disability to long term
care insurance after age 60, the core benefit of $100 a day for nursing
home care ($50 a day for home health care) is guaranteed issue. This
means there are no additional medical underwriting requirements. However, upgrades — such as raising the daily benefit — are subject to additional underwriting.
The
Income Series is being marketed to customers between ages 30 and 40,
according to Magro. Premiums are tied to income. For a 35-year-old male
earning $100,000 annually, Income I would cost approximately $1,250 per
year, he says. The cost would double for the same policy for the same
individual at age 50, to approximately $2,535. Disability insurance
is crucial, Magro says, as medical advances allow people to live
longer. Also, illness and injury are more likely to prevent people from
working than to cause death. The average American has a 30 percent
chance of experiencing a work-stopping disability lasting three months
or more before retiring, according to The Society of Actuaries, which
provides research for the disability industry. Unum began offering the new product on Oct. 2. It is now approved for sale in 41 states and the District of Columbia.
|
