What is a Life Insurance Waiver of Premium Based on Disability?

If you have a life insurance plan through your employer and you become disabled, you may be able to keep your life insurance without paying premiums. How? Something called a premium waiver due to disability.

Some group life insurance plans - including many covered by the federal ERISA law that governs employee benefits - have a provision that allows disabled employees to keep their life insurance coverage. Some refer to these provisions as Life Insurance Waiver of Premium (shorthand: LIWOP). Many people know about their Long Term Disability (LTD) insurance coverage. However, you may also have a waiver of premium provision in your life insurance policy that kicks in based on your disability. Even if you do not have LTD coverage, you may be able to file an application with your life insurance benefits plan administrator asking that your coverage be continued. If you have have LTD coverage, you probably still have to file a separate application with the life plan administrator. Sometimes that will be the insurer, but you can ask your employer or the sponsor of your group life plan for the application for benefits.

Why is a Life Insurance Premium Waiver valuable coverage? Because it means you get free life insurance if you can prove that you are disabled under the plan's definition of disability. There is no standard definition. You have to read the life insurance policy to determine what you have to prove to show that you are disabled. If you have LTD coverage, the definition of disability in your LTD plan may be different than the definition of disability in your Life Insurance policy.

It is strongly recommended that you hire an ERISA Disability Attorney if you think you may hav a Life Insurance Waiver of Premium claim. Hiring an attorney before you file your claim may save you time and let you keep thousands of dollars of life insurance coverage....for free.



Copyright (c) 2011 by John V. Tucker and Tucker & Ludin, P.A. All rights reserved. For assistance with your Long Term Disability claim, ERISA Disability benefit claim, Florida ERISA claim, or Life Insurance Disability Premium Waiver claim, call Disability Lawyer John Tucker at (866) 282-5260.