PERSONAL FINANCE Earners should consider disabilities, insurer says

Mike Simonds says if you ask people whether they know many disabled people, their answer likely will be no.

But, he said, ask how many people they've seen suffer an illness preventing them from working for a few months, and the response is different.

"Then it becomes real," the UnumProvident Corp. vice president said.

The Chattanooga-based company, the nation's No. 1 disability insurer with about 3,000 workers in the city, is rolling out a new campaign aimed at telling Americans about Unum-Provident products.

Company spokeswoman Mary Clarke Guenther said a lighthearted mailer featuring a small rock and the question, "What are the odds a meteor will hit your house?" kicked off the effort.

The answer to the question, according to the company, is one in 182 trillion. But, it said, the odds are 1 in 3 that someone will miss three months pay because of injury or illness during his or her working life.

Chattanoogan Bill Robinson, who sustained injuries from a hunting accident in 2001, said he had a group disability policy with the company for which he worked and an individual one as well.

"From my standpoint, protecting my income was important. It made a lot of sense. For most people, it makes a lot," he said.

Mr. Simonds, UnumProvident's vice president of marketing and product development, said there's room for growth in the disability insurance arena.

According to UnumProvident, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that 39 percent of employees participate in short-term disability benefits and 28 percent have long-term coverage.

In-force premiums from short- and long-term disability coverage have grown from $9 billion in 2001 to $11.2 billion in 2005, consulting firm JHA said in a recent report.

Mr. Simonds said the marketing campaign is trying to dispel myths about disability coverage.

For example, many people buy life insurance so their families can pay their home mortgage if they die but, the company said, foreclosure because of disability is 16 times more likely.

Mr. Simonds said another misconception is that employee benefits cover disability. While health insurance usually covers medical costs, it doesn't replace income when someone is disabled, he said.

Two-thirds of all disabling injuries occur off the job, so state workers' compensation doesn't kick in, the insurance official said.

Mr. Simonds said many people don't realize how quickly savings are depleted when a sickness or injury strikes.

"With an illness such as cancer and treatment protocols, people are seeing remission and living productive longer lives. How long can you support yourself on your savings?" he asked.

Mrs. Guenther said studies show people are not saving as much money as they should.

"People are not saving for a rainy day," she said.

In addition, the company said Social Security disability insurance has tough eligibility requirements. In 2004, only 37 out of 100 initial applications for Social Security disability were approved, according to Unum-Provident.