Key employee disability income insurance is less well known than key employee life insurance. Nevertheless, the risk of a key employee experiencing partial, total or permanent disability is actually much greater than the risk the person will die. Should a key employee suffer permanent total disability, the loss to your business will be just the same as if the person had died. Key employee disability income insurance protects the business from this loss exposure by paying you anywhere from 40 to 70 percent of the disabled employee's earned income.

If the disabled person is a partner or sole proprietor, a business overhead expense disability policy provides some protection. This pays, up to the policy limit, office expenses including rent, utilities, salaries, and depreciation that continue when a partner or sole proprietor is disabled.