Group disability insurance replaces a portion of an employee’s income if they cannot work due to a qualifying illness, injury, or pregnancy. Employers often offer short-term disability (STD) for the early weeks of a disability and long-term disability (LTD) for extended absences from work.

Plans can be employer-paid, employee-paid (voluntary), or cost-shared. Many employers provide a basic level of life and disability coverage at no cost to employees and allow them to purchase additional voluntary coverage through convenient payroll deductions.

Life insurance benefits are often expressed as a flat amount (such as $25,000 or $50,000) or as a multiple of salary. Disability benefits usually replace a percentage of pre-disability earnings, such as 50% to 60%, up to a monthly maximum. We help you choose benefit levels that align with your compensation structure and budget.

Most group life and disability plans end when employment ends, but many carriers offer options to convert or port coverage to an individual policy. We explain these options and help you communicate them so employees understand what happens to their coverage when they retire, resign, or change employers.

Employees can usually enroll when they first become eligible, during your annual open enrollment period, or after a qualifying life event such as marriage, birth, or loss of other coverage. Some changes may require evidence of insurability if employees apply above guaranteed issue amounts.