Frequently Asked Questions

 

   1. Isn't Aflac health insurance? 'Cause we already have that.

 

No. Aflac is not health insurance. 

• Health insurance pays doctors and hospitals for any medical services rendered.
  

• Aflac pays you cash to use as you need it.

When you get sick or injured, your health insurance will do a great job of paying most medical expenses. But they'll never cover everything. This is especially true now with health care reform, with co-pays/deductibles rising and many doctors no longer taking insurance.

With Aflac's cash benefits, you protect yourself from high-deductibles and co-pays. When something serious happens, you also won't have to worry about the high cost of going out-of-network or seeing a specialist for treatment.

2. We already have Workers' Comp for when someone gets injured on the job. Why would we need this?

Worker's Comp will help cover wages and medical expenses if you're hurt on the job. Your benefit is based on your average wage for the 52 weeks prior to the injury, and it varies by industry. It's never equal to the wages you would normally earn, and (in California) never covers punitive damages like pain and suffering.

State programs cannot make you financially whole again. Aflac's policies are designed to fit with state programs to ensure you can pay for living expenses and recover from your injury with dignity.

Worker's comp also can't help if you're hurt away from the job.

3. Okay, but we also have State Disability Insurance if someone gets seriously sick or injured. Why would we need this?

State Disability is great for when you can't work because of a serious sickness or injury. But it has two significant gaps. First, the program is designed to only cover ~55% of your income. Most people can't survive on 55% of their income alone.

Second, state disability won't help if your spouse or loved one gets sick or injured. If you need to take time off work to care for a loved one, you won't receive any state support.

4. If my health insurance pays for a benefit, doesn't that mean Aflac won't pay? In other words, why would I need both?

No. There is no coordination of benefits between Aflac and your health insurance provider. You will always get paid your cash benefit in addition to any coverage provided by your health insurance.

5. How can I be sure that Aflac will pay me?

Aflac pays $10 million in claims each day. 94% are paid within 4 days of receipt. Although we've all heard of companies putting profits ahead of policyholders, Aflac was founded in 1955 as a small American company in Columbus, Georgia, built upon strong moral principles. Now, Aflac is a global, publicly-traded organization that has secured $120 billion dollars in assets, exhibits top financial credentials, and consistently ranks among the Top 10 most ethical companies in the world.

6. How much will it cost my business to add Aflac as a benefit?

Nothing. It's free. In fact, it'll save your business money in taxes.

7. Wait. How does Aflac save my business in payroll taxes?

Aflac is set up as a Section 125 (or Cafeteria Plan). That means it allows employees to obtain qualifying benefits pre-tax. When your employees contribute part of their wages to these pre-tax benefits, your taxable payroll becomes smaller. 

Right now, you pay 7.65% in taxes on your FICA. If your annual taxable payroll was $100,000, you would pay $7,650.

However, if your employees purchased $15,000 in Aflac benefits, it would reduce their wages and your taxable payroll by $15,000.

Your annual taxable payroll would now be $85,000. You still have to pay 7.65% in FICA taxes, but you'll only have to pay $6,503.

That's a savings of $1,142. And we'll set it up for you at no cost.

Frequently Heard Objections (Employers)

1. I'm not sure my employees will want this. Maybe I'll ask first and see if there's any interest.

Fantastic. Now, for the same reason I wouldn't propose to do your job, I wouldn't ask you to explain to your employees about insurance. Assuming they understand the need as much as you do, I'd love to schedule a second meeting and take ten minutes to explain to them in a group setting what it is and how it works.

When we get three or more employees willing to pay for 100% of the premium at no cost to you, would you be so kind as to allow them to secure the group rate and take advantage of the pre-tax benefit?

2. My employees can't afford it.

I understand. In today's economy, every dollar counts. Investment professionals tell us that we aren't saving enough for retirement, and they're right. We do what we can to put aside that 8-10% for retirement. But who does it?

But this is precisely why financial protection is so important. Shouldn't your employees-- at the very least-- be offered the option to put aside 1-2% to protect the money they already have? And protect the income they depend upon from their job?

The good news is that we make our plans affordable to the individual. We're able to tailor these plans to each employee's financial situation. Many of our protection plans cost as little as $6/week. That's less than $1 a day. Would you say that's something your employees can afford?

3. We already have great benefits.

Imagine one of your employees walked into your office today and said his spouse or child was diagnosed with cancer or had a serious accident, and he needed to take time off work to be with them. Suppose he asked: What in our great benefits package do we have right now to provide for this?

Unfortunately, today, the answer would be nothing. Did you know that a Harvard research study found that 60% of bankruptcies were caused by medical expenses? And over 3/4 of them had medical insurance?

But when you add Aflac as a voluntary program, you offer your employees the reassurance of a $100 billion dollar company. You'll have the luxury of knowing you offered them that protection, rather than your condolences or charity.

4. Why should I care about adding more benefits?

I'm willing to bet that you care about your employees. And I'm sure you'd agree that one of the toughest things to deal with is employee turnover. It's hard to keep our best and brightest. Did you know that half of the workforce in America is looking for a new job? And 83% would be willing to take a pay cut if it meant better benefits?

A half a million businesses in America today offer Aflac to their employees, at no cost to the company. Employers are competing left and right to gain the best employees -- from large companies like Microsoft and SpaceX -- to small businesses wanting to improve compensation but can't quite compete with big corporations offering gym memberships and Food-Truck-Fridays. If you could offer better compensation at no cost to you, would you say no?

5. I understand it's free, but I don't want more to do.

Good news! You won't have more to do. There's no ongoing administrative burden. As your agent, I'll take care of the process from A-Z. I'll educate your employees 1-on-1, enroll them, and help with claims issues alongside our customer service department. There's nothing you have to do except allow us to setup a simple payroll deduction.

6. (You seem like a nice guy, but) I just don't see the need for it.

In my experience, I've never met with a business owner who understood the value of what we do and said no. So I must not have communicated that effectively. When you say you don't see the need, did you mean you don't see the value for your employees? Or you don't see the value for your business?

7. I just don't have time to do this.

Good news! You're pretty much done. All you need at this point is to introduce me to someone to orchestrate the enrollment and provide a date (about two weeks out) to review the results. I will take care of the rest.

8. Okay, I get it. But I don't want to do this now.

I hear you. And believe me, I know that "no" means "no for now," not "no not ever." What I would like to ask is that you accept me calls as I check on you now and then, just so I know if things have changed.

Truth be told, with health care reform, it's going to be more than likely that things will change. A study by Towers Watson shows that within the next four years, 1 of out every 2 businesses will be offering this type of financial protection. When that time comes, I'd like to be the person you work with. Does that sound reasonable?

Frequently Heard Objections (Employees)

1. I can't afford it.

I understand. In today's economy, every dollar counts. This is precisely why financial protection is so important. Investment professionals tell us that we aren't saving enough for retirement, and they're right. We do what we can to put aside that 8-10% for retirement, even if it's hard. But shouldn't we protect the money that we already have? And protect the income we depend on from our job?

Because Aflac is offered through your employer, you'll be receiving access to these benefits at a group rate. That means you're getting it at about half the price of buying it directly.

2. I still can't afford it.

Many plans include a wellness benefit. This means you can file a claim and get paid back every year simply for going to see a doctor for routine exams.

3. Um. I still can't afford it, I think.

Remember, these plans are paid with pre-tax dollars. As most people are in a 25% tax bracket, every dollar you spend pre-tax costs you about $0.75 in take-home dollars. So if something has a pre-tax price of $10.00, it really only costs you the equivalent of $7.50 in take-home dollars.

4. You lost me. What does it all mean?

What if I could show you how you can get a $25.00 policy for (virtually) free?

Let's presume you earn $1,000 in gross wages. You pay 25% in income taxes. Therefore, your take home income is $750. ($1,000 - $250 = $750). OK so far?

So if you have $750, and you pay for $100 for insurance after tax, your take home pay would be $650. ($750 - $100 = $650) Right?

When you buy your insurance pre-tax, your take home pay looks like this:

You earn $1,000 in wages. But you pay for your $100 in insurance pre-tax. Therefore your gross wages now becomes $900. ($1,000 - $100 = $900).

You pay 25% in income tax on $900. ($900 - $225 = $675).

Your take home pay is $675. That's $25 more in your pocket than if you bought insurance after tax.

Aflac's Accident Indemnity Plan costs around $25 per month. You'll have the same amount of take home dollars ($650) as you did if you bought insurance after tax.