Disability Insurance Claimants Pleased with Policies, AHIP Survey Shows |
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Written by U. S. Insurance News
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Monday, 16 June 2008 |
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The best advertisements for private disability insurance are consumers
who are covered by such policies—and, unfortunately, need to make a
claim.
According to a recent survey from America’s Health Insurance Plans
(AHIP), the vast majority of disability income insurance claimants are
satisfied with their policy.
The survey of disability insurance claimants, conducted by Harris Interactive, assessed their satisfaction with their policy and their experience filing a claim and receiving benefits. Overall, 82 percent said that they were satisfied with their disability income insurance policy. Claimants said they were satisfied with the process for filing a claim (81 percent), the promptness of the payments (79 percent), the responsiveness of the insurer (75 percent), and the overall communication from their insurer (71 percent).
Most claimants said they did not have any problems with the claims process, and of those who did, the majority had their problem resolved satisfactorily. Most claimants did not have problems getting paperwork filed (76 percent), getting approval for their claim (73 percent), or receiving disbursements (78 percent). Among those who reported problems, 84 percent said their problem was resolved satisfactorily.
While disability insurance carriers surely like to hear of these approval rates, even better is the acknowledgement from claimants that their disability coverage prevented them from suffering a financial hardship—a key selling point for disability insurance carriers. Accordingly, 96 of claimants said it is at least somewhat likely that they would have suffered financial hardship had they not received disability insurance benefits after suffering a disability. Two-thirds (67 percent) said it is very or extremely likely that they would have suffered financial hardship.
“Most claimants say they would have suffered financial hardship had they not protected their income with disability insurance,” said Humphrey Taylor, chairman of The Harris Poll. Furthermore, 65 percent of claimants said they would recommend disability income insurance to their family and friends—similar to the number (69 percent) of claimants who said their motivation for purchasing private disability insurance was to provide for their family in case they became disabled and could not work.
The poll also found that many private disability insurance claimants also file for benefits from the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program. Disability insurance provides a financial lifeline while applicants wait for a final decision regarding their SSDI application. In addition, many disability insurers help individuals with the SSDI application process. Seventy-nine percent of disability insurance claimants who also received SSDI benefits said they were satisfied with their overall experience with the SSDI program.
“The survey highlights an opportunity for private disability insurers and the Social Security Administration to continue to work together to ensure disabled workers get the financial assistance they need,” said Karen Ignagni, president and CEO of AHIP.
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