How to help your clients bring NYS disability benefits in line with PFL coverage
New York became a trailblazer with the introduction of a robust Paid Family Leave program. Almost a decade later, more states are rolling out statutory paid family and medical leave programs. New York legislators are behind the times when it comes to NYS disability benefits.
In most states that require paid family and medical leave as a combined benefit, the payouts are similar whether you need time off for your own medical condition or you’re caring for someone else. That’s not the case in New York, where the maximum weekly benefit for PFL is nearly seven times the maximum for NYS disability pay.
“There’s not this huge gap you see in New York in the other states,” said Selena Kutschera, Director of DBL and TDB Benefits for The DBL Center. “Brokers who want to do the right thing by their customers, and offer comparable benefits packages, will show their clients how easy it is to enrich DBL.”
Just how easy IS it to sell enriched DBL? So easy, Kutschera broke it down into three simple steps for DBL Center brokers.
1. Find the Best Candidates for Enriched DBL Right Now
You can only enrich DBL when a customer’s policy is up for renewal, which means not every customer can enrich DBL right now. Some carriers renew all their policies in January, others renew at different times of the year. Use your Broker Dashboard to find customers up for renewal and create a list.
As of May 30, 2025, the Workers Compensation Board will start actively reviewing New York State disability insurance policies and canceling those that are delinquent or no longer active. In the past, if a client missed a payment in New York, a broker could backdate and reinstate the policy to avoid fines or added fees. If you have clients who consistently miss payments, reach out to them so they aren’t blindsided by this change and find themselves uninsured.
To learn more, sign up for our free webinar on May 20, 2025.
2. Use The DBL Center’s Marketing Materials to Share the Advantages of Enriched DBL
Let The DBL Center do the work for you. We provide our brokers with a letter that lists the insured’s carrier, their current rates, and a chart on the back showing the options to enrich DBL.Let The DBL Center do the work for you. We provide our brokers with a letter that lists the insured’s carrier, their current rates, and a chart on the back showing the options to enrich DBL.
Dollar for dollar, DBL is one of the most cost-effective benefits to increase coverage. And the maximum benefit of $850 a week means employees who are ill or injured can focus on getting better, with fewer financial worries. “Who can live on $170 in New York?” Kutschera said.
3. Let The DBL Center Bind Your Policy
Once your clients call or write back expressing interest, determine their enriched coverage levels. Let your DBL Center representative know, and, from there, we do it all. As your back-office support staff offering white-glove service at every stage of the sale, we work directly with the carriers to enrich your client’s DBL policies through a paperless process. If you’re writing a policy for a client with less than 50 lives, we can provide you with a binding quote in seconds.
Simply go here, choose one of our top-rated carriers, complete each field, and click submit.
Contact our team directly by phone or email to bind policies with more than 50 lives.
Stop Leaving Money on the Table
Did you know it costs five times as much to acquire a new customer than to retain an existing customer? If you’re looking for generous commissions with little work and no hard sales, let The DBL Center help you enrich DBL packages for your existing customers and increase your commissions today.
FAQs
How does disability insurance work in NY?
NY state disability benefits provide partial salary replacement for up to 26 weeks for employees who are ill or injured off-the-job.
Who is eligible for NY state disability?
You may qualify for New York State disability benefits if you work for a covered employer and have incurred an illness or injury off-the-job and are undergoing treatment. Pregnant people can qualify for disability benefits in New York for four weeks before their due date, and six weeks following a natural childbirth or eight weeks following a c-section. Employees cannot collect PFL and DBL at the same time.
Do employers pay NY state disability insurance?
Most employers in NY are required to provide New York State disability insurance to their workers. They can write this policy through the NYSIF (New York State Insurance Fund) or through a private carrier for cost savings, enriched benefits, and no waiting period. Your employer can pay the full amount of NYS DBL insurance premiums or share the cost with the employee through payroll deductions. The employee contribution is one-half of 1% of your wages, not to exceed 60 cents per week.
