Guardian disability insurance questions?
Is this a good policy? My broker says it's better than Aflac because it's non-cancellable and lasts until I'm 65 should I need it. He said that as a white-collar professional, long-term disability ins is important for me which I can understand since I need to protect my income. He gave me a health questionnaire to fill out. I'm not totally comfortable filling it out - is it standard to fill one out and do a physical exam and bloodwork like they want? If I take this policy, does this long-term disability ins totally replace Aflac (I have a 6 month policy through my employer). Does it make a difference that my broker is a proponent of the Lifetime Economic Acceleration Process (LEAP), which I think is hooey (I know LEAP is a subsidiary of Guardan)? Aside from that his description of Guardian disability insurance makes it seem like a good choice among several (Met, NY, Std).
Public Comments
- Guardian is a good product, however, they have a BUNCH of disability products, so you need to rely on your broker to compare and contrast the two different policies. Yes, you're more likely to need disability coverage than life insurance before you're 65. It gets underwritten JUST like life insurance - they want to make sure that there's nothing wrong with you NOW. Potentially, they could be paying out hundreds of thousands of dollars, so it is standard to do the exam & bloodwork, and even request medical records from your doctor. Long term disability is DIFFERENT from short term disability - typically it would have a 6 month waiting period - so you'd keep BOTH. The Aflac policy would cover the first six months, the Guardian would cover the balance until you're 65. Sure, you're broker is going to be biased towards a few products. It STILL doesn't hurt to get a quote from him, but while you're shopping (BEFORE you cut a check), you might ALSO want to call the guy that sells your house and car insurance, and ask HIM for a couple quotes. Just to compare price vs. coverages.
- He sounds like a Guardian agent, not a broker. Other "white-collar" companies that you should consider in your search are Principal, Mass Mutual, and Met. Every company agent is trained well to sell their product against the others whether its Guardian, Met, or whoever. They have a clear bias.
