The Insurance Buying Guide: Your Resources

Once you know how much you make and how much you need to protect, the next question is: Where is the money going to come from to pay these various obligations?

It's time to examine your other sources of money. This may include:

• Personal Assets. Start with the most liquid asset, your personal savings. Do you have any savings? If so, how much and how adequate is it for purposes of paying expenses? Furthermore, will you be willing to use personal savings to pay expenses associated with a disability?
• Work-Related Benefits. What type of disability benefits do you have from your employer? Is there a formal sick pay or salary continuation plan? Do you have any accumulated sick days?
• Government Benefits. Are you eligible for disability benefits from Social Security? (Because so many claimants are denied, don't expect to receive any Social Security disability benefits. Besides, even if you do qualify, it takes nearly a year to receive the first check.) What about state disability benefits?
• Non-Earned Income. If you own an apartment building, the rents will keep coming in, even if you're disabled (although you might have increased expenses, if you have to hire someone to take care of things you ordinarily do yourself). Other forms of non-earned income include interest income, dividends, other rental income, deferred compensation and residual commissions, royalties or other miscellaneous income, and group disability income insurance.