Your paycheque is your biggest asset. Protect it.

What it is, in one sentence

Disability insurance pays you a monthly benefit if an illness or injury keeps you from working. Not a lump sum like critical illness, but a paycheque replacement that keeps arriving while you recover. It is the most under-owned protection in Canada, and the one most working people would miss fastest.

Who needs it most

If your household runs on your ability to work, you are the person this was designed for. Self-employed Canadians and contractors sit at the top of the list: no group plan, no paid sick leave, and the bills do not pause. Business owners who are the business. Single-income families. Young professionals with decades of earning ahead of them, because a disability at 35 costs far more in lost income than the same event at 60.

Short term vs long term

Short-term disability covers the first weeks or months, often through an employer plan, bridging you to recovery or to long-term coverage. Long-term disability is the serious protection: benefits that can run for years, sometimes to age 65, if you cannot return to work. If you are buying your own coverage, long-term is usually where the real value lives.

How much coverage is enough

Start with the gap: your monthly must-pay bills minus what would still come in if you could not work. Most individual policies replace a portion of pre-disability income, commonly up to around 60 to 85 percent depending on the plan, because insurers want you to have a reason to return to work. The honest exercise: add up the non-negotiables, mortgage or rent, food, insurance premiums, debt payments, then cover that number first.

How it differs from critical illness

Critical illness pays one tax-free lump sum at diagnosis of a covered condition. Disability insurance pays monthly for as long as you cannot work, whatever the cause, as long as it meets the policy definition. One protects against the cost shock of a diagnosis. The other protects the income stream itself. Many Canadians carry both, and they do different jobs. Read the critical illness guide to see the other half of the picture.

The application, in plain English

You apply while healthy. The insurer asks about your health, your occupation, and your income, and the price reflects the risk of your job: a desk worker pays less than a roofer, because the odds differ. Two definitions matter more than anything: the waiting period (how long after disability before benefits start, often 90 days) and the benefit period (how long benefits can last). "Own occupation" means you are covered if you cannot do your job; "any occupation" means you must be unable to do any job you are suited for. Read those definitions before you sign anything.

Common questions