More than half of Canadians believe they would experience financial difficulty if their pay was delayed by even one week.
Most Canadians are woefully unprepared should disability strike.
An RBC Insurance survey revealed that just 16 per cent of respondents have individual disability insurance outside of any workplace coverage.
Among Canadian workers who have not purchased an individual policy, one-in-10 don't know what disability coverage is, while 22 per cent have not thought about their chances of becoming disabled.
Indeed, 76 per cent believe that should they become disabled and unable to work for three months there would be serious financial implications for their family, such as significant debt or an impact on retirement plans.
Despite the concern, only 27 per cent of Canadian workers have discussed how a disability would financially impact their family. This number does not even increase substantially among workers who've indicated that they've taken time off in the past because of a disability 33 per cent.
"Industry research shows that 26 per cent of Canadians say they could not pull together $2,000 over the next month if an emergency expense arose; and more than half of Canadians believe they would find themselves in financial difficulty if their pay was delayed by even a week. These findings emphasize the need for Canadians to ensure that they have the appropriate level of coverage in case of a long term disability," said Mark Hardy, senior manager, Life and Living Benefits, RBC Insurance.
Compounding the issue is most Canadians would dip into their personal savings (34 per cent) to pay for essential living expenses; while others said they would rely on their spouse/partner's income (29 per cent), government support (19 per cent) and cash in investments (16 per cent). Fifteen per cent of Canadian workers don't know how they would pay for their living expenses if they were faced with a disability.
"The average length of a disability over 90 days is between two to three years. Canadians should ask themselves 'Do I have enough money saved to cover living expenses and health care bills throughout the entire length of my disability?' Most people will realize that they don't,” said Hardy.
"Purchasing individual disability coverage provides you with the security of knowing you will have money coming in to replace your lost income."
An RBC Insurance survey revealed that just 16 per cent of respondents have individual disability insurance outside of any workplace coverage.
Among Canadian workers who have not purchased an individual policy, one-in-10 don't know what disability coverage is, while 22 per cent have not thought about their chances of becoming disabled.
Indeed, 76 per cent believe that should they become disabled and unable to work for three months there would be serious financial implications for their family, such as significant debt or an impact on retirement plans.
Despite the concern, only 27 per cent of Canadian workers have discussed how a disability would financially impact their family. This number does not even increase substantially among workers who've indicated that they've taken time off in the past because of a disability 33 per cent.
"Industry research shows that 26 per cent of Canadians say they could not pull together $2,000 over the next month if an emergency expense arose; and more than half of Canadians believe they would find themselves in financial difficulty if their pay was delayed by even a week. These findings emphasize the need for Canadians to ensure that they have the appropriate level of coverage in case of a long term disability," said Mark Hardy, senior manager, Life and Living Benefits, RBC Insurance.
Compounding the issue is most Canadians would dip into their personal savings (34 per cent) to pay for essential living expenses; while others said they would rely on their spouse/partner's income (29 per cent), government support (19 per cent) and cash in investments (16 per cent). Fifteen per cent of Canadian workers don't know how they would pay for their living expenses if they were faced with a disability.
"The average length of a disability over 90 days is between two to three years. Canadians should ask themselves 'Do I have enough money saved to cover living expenses and health care bills throughout the entire length of my disability?' Most people will realize that they don't,” said Hardy.
"Purchasing individual disability coverage provides you with the security of knowing you will have money coming in to replace your lost income."
