When shopping for disability insurance online, it is important to keep in mind that policies will not vary much from company to company. If you are working with an experienced broker, chances are that you will receive quotes from the same companies with the same premiums.
If the premiums are substantially different from the same company there are a few reasons why:
1) Discounts. I had a recent graduating anesthesiology medical resident contact me who was shopping for quotes online. We already had a discount available to her at her university. As a result, her rates were 55% less with Set for Life than the other companies. At first she thought something must have been wrong since the difference was so dramatic.
2) Occupational class. Sometimes brokers will not classify your occupation accurately which can result in a variance in premium variances. I had a computer science engineer contact me recently. He received quotes from the same company but the other broker had classified him as a systems analyst as opposed to an engineer. The difference in premium was 20%.
3) Level of experience. Some companies will upgrade your occupational class thereby reducing your premium. I worked with a successful salesperson with several years of experience. Because of his steady and substantial income, we were able to save him significantly on his premiums.
