Principal disability insurance is issued by Principal Life Insurance Company, founded in 1879 in Des Moines, Iowa, and rated A+ (Superior) by AM Best. It is one of the “Big 5” carriers that write true own-occupation coverage for professionals. But before anything else, answer one question: did your policy come from your employer, or did you buy it yourself? Principal runs those as two separate operations with different claim numbers, different forms, and, most importantly, completely different legal rights if you ever get denied. Individual claims: 800-422-3788. Group claims: 800-245-1522.

Principal Disability Insurance: Key Facts at a Glance

Detail	What we found
Issuing company	Principal Life Insurance Company, a member of Principal Financial Group
Founded	1879, headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa
AM Best rating	A+ (Superior)
Current individual policy	Income Protector (Series 700), launched May 1, 2023
Where HH750 still applies	California and New York only, as of October 2024
Individual disability claims	800-422-3788, 7:30am to 5:00pm CST
Group STD and LTD claims	800-245-1522, 7:30am to 5:00pm CT
Life and disability customers	800-247-9988
Individual claims address	711 High Street, Des Moines, IA 50392
Group claims address	PO Box 14472, Des Moines, IA 50306-3472
STD decision goal	14 days from receipt of claim

Which Principal Policy Do You Have? Start Here

Most of the traffic to this question is not people shopping. It is people who already have Principal and need to log in, pay a bill, or file a claim. So let us answer the question that decides all of those, because almost no review page mentions it.

Principal sells disability insurance through two entirely separate channels, and you need to know which one you are in.

Group disability, meaning short-term or long-term coverage you got through your employer’s benefits package. You did not choose Principal. Your HR department did.

Individual disability, meaning a policy you bought yourself through a financial professional. Your name is on the contract and you pay the premium.

Same insurer. Different claim departments, different phone numbers, different forms, different mailing addresses.

And here is the part that actually matters. If your coverage came through your employer, your claim is almost certainly governed by ERISA, the federal law covering employer benefit plans. Under ERISA there are no jury trials and no punitive damages. Discovery is very limited. Judges often defer to the insurance company’s own decision about whether you are disabled. And if a judge disagrees with a denial, they can send the case back to Principal to review again. That means Principal gets another chance to reach the same answer.

If you bought the policy yourself, outside your employer, those restrictions do not apply to you.

Same company. Same disability. Two very different sets of rights. That distinction is worth more than every star rating on this page, and you will not find it on a broker’s review.

Principal Disability Insurance Login, Phone Number and Address

Everything below comes from Principal’s own help pages, current at our review date. Verify before you rely on any of it, since numbers do change.

Login and pay online. Sign in at principal.com. Your account is where you file most claims, track claim status, view payment reports, and manage the policy. If you are an employer or benefits administrator without eService access, Principal lists 800-843-1371.

Phone numbers, by what you actually need:

What you need	Number
Individual disability claim	800-422-3788 (7:30am to 5:00pm CST)
Group short-term or long-term disability claim	800-245-1522 (7:30am to 5:00pm CT)
Life and disability insurance customers, general	800-247-9988
Return-to-work notification	800-245-1522
Group premium questions	800-843-1371
Assistance in Spanish	800-243-1404
Retirement plan participants	800-547-7754

Mailing addresses:

Individual Disability Claims, Principal Life Insurance Company, 711 High Street, Des Moines, IA 50392.

Group Life and Disability Claims, Principal Life Insurance Company, PO Box 14472, Des Moines, IA 50306-3472.

Email and fax: group claims go to SBDClaims@principal.com or fax 800-255-6609. Individual disability claims go to IndividualDisabilityClaims@exchange.principal.com.

Notice that the individual and group routes share almost nothing. Sending your individual disability paperwork to the group claims fax is a genuinely common way to lose two weeks.

Principal Disability Insurance Claim Form: How to File

The mechanics differ by policy type, and the timing rules are stricter than people expect.

When to file matters more than most people realise.

For a short-term disability claim, file as soon as possible, but no more than 30 days before your date of disability. For a long-term disability claim, Principal says to file no later than halfway through your LTD elimination period. Do not wait for the elimination period to end. Group claim forms generally need submitting within 30 days of your expected date of disability.

For group claims, log in at principal.com and file through your account, or download the paper form and send it to SBDClaims@principal.com or fax 800-255-6609.

For individual claims, call 800-422-3788 and they will email or mail the forms to you.

One detail nobody warns you about. For individual disability claims, Principal will call you to conduct a phone interview to gather more details. Their own guidance says this is standard procedure and cannot be waived. Expect it, prepare for it, and take notes during it.

Principal also says its individual disability claim reviews may draw on CPAs, medical reviewers, and Social Security experts. That is normal for individual DI, where benefits are large and run for years. It also means the review is tougher than a group STD claim, so your documentation has to hold up.

How Long Does It Take to Get Your Money From Principal?

Principal publishes goals rather than guarantees, and it is worth separating a decision from a payment.

For short-term disability, Principal’s stated goal is a decision 14 days after the claim is received.

For individual disability, the goal is 10 business days from when claim forms are received to send an initial status letter if more information is needed.

Those are decision timelines. Payment follows approval, by direct deposit or mailed check.

Three practical things that affect what actually lands in your account:

Tax. Principal does not withhold state or federal tax by default, though it will at your request. FICA is withheld for six months from your last day worked. So the number you are quoted is not the number you receive, and a surprise tax bill in April is avoidable.

Pregnancy claims pay as a lump sum after delivery, not as you go. Principal cites typical recovery of 6 weeks for a natural delivery and 8 weeks for a caesarean. Worth planning around, because it means no money arrives during the leave itself.

Return to work immediately triggers a notification duty. Call 800-245-1522 the day you go back, full-time or part-time. Not doing so creates an overpayment that Principal will reclaim.

And one thing to know before you file: short-term disability covers your own medical condition. It does not cover time off for paternity, surrogacy, or adoption leave. Those are different benefits.

Is Principal a Good Disability Insurance Company?

By the objective measures, yes, with real caveats.

Financial strength is strong. Principal Life holds A+ (Superior) from AM Best, the rating that matters most for a product you might claim on in thirty years. A disability policy is only as good as the company’s ability to pay in 2055.

It is one of the Big 5. The carriers that write true own-occupation coverage with specialty-specific language for professionals are Ameritas, Guardian, MassMutual, Principal, and The Standard. Principal being on that list is meaningful. Most insurers are not.

The product is genuinely flexible. It is non-cancelable and guaranteed renewable to 65. Elimination periods run from 30 to 365 days. There is a compound COLA rider, residual and short-term residual riders, a transitional occupation rider, and eight occupation classes.

Now the caveats, honestly:

Own-occupation wording is where sources disagree. Some reviewers say Principal’s true own-occupation definition is built into the base policy, next to a modified own-occupation option, with no extra rider needed. Others say true own-occupation requires a Regular Occupation rider, and that without it you do not have true own-occupation cover. This may reflect the change from HH750 to Income Protector, or vary by state and occupation class. We are not going to resolve it for you with a guess. Ask for the definition of disability in writing on your own illustration and read it. That is the only version that binds anyone.

Specialty-specific language is not universal by state. Principal has been reported as not offering specialty-specific own-occupation wording in a small number of states. Same carrier, same product, different contract depending where you live.

Benefit period options may have changed. HH750 was reported as offering benefit periods to ages 65, 67 and 70. Income Protector is reported at 2 years, 5 years, to age 65, or to age 67. If a benefit period to 70 matters to you, confirm it rather than assuming.

Reviews are thin. There simply are not many consumer reviews of Principal disability insurance, and the ones that exist run both positive and negative. That is normal for individual DI, where people buy once and rarely claim, but it means star ratings here carry little information.

What Is Principal Disability Insurance? Products and the HH750 Change

This trips up a lot of readers, because most review pages are describing a policy Principal mostly stopped selling.

Principal Income Protector (Series 700) launched on May 1, 2023, replacing the long-running HH750 series. As of October 1, 2024, Income Protector is available in every state except California and New York, where HH750 is still offered.

So if you are reading a “Principal HH750 review” and you live in Ohio, you are reading about a product you cannot buy.

What Income Protector includes:

• Non-cancelable and guaranteed renewable to age 65. Principal cannot cancel it, raise your premium, or change your benefits while you pay. After 65 it becomes conditionally renewable annually, as long as you are working full time.
• Elimination periods of 30, 60, 90, 180, or 365 days.
• Benefit periods of 2 years, 5 years, to age 65, or to age 67.
• A COLA rider with a 3% to 6% maximum, increasing on a compound basis.
• Residual and short-term residual disability riders, a transitional occupation rider, an automatic increase option, and a benefit update rider.
• Eight occupation classes: 5A, 5A-M, 4A, 4A-M, 3A, 3A-M, 2A and A. The “M” categories cap the maximum issue and participation limit. That is how Principal controls its exposure on the highest-earning occupations.

Principal also runs a Guaranteed Standard Issue programme, used by employers and by residency programmes, where coverage is issued without medical underwriting.

Principal Financial Group is much bigger than disability. It also does retirement and income solutions, asset management, group benefits, and life insurance. Disability is one line in a large financial company, which is part of why the A+ rating is what it is.

What Is the Lawsuit Against Principal Financial Group?

This gets searched a lot, so here is a careful, sourced answer rather than a scare story.

There is no single famous lawsuit against Principal over disability insurance. The question most likely traces back to a genuine and large case, but it is worth knowing what it actually was.

In 2000, Principal Life agreed to settle two class actions alleging improper sales practices. They covered roughly 960,000 life insurance and annuity holders. An Iowa district court approved the $374 million settlement in early 2001. The allegations were that agents used misleading policy illustrations, marketing materials and sales presentations to sell life insurance and annuities. In its own SEC filings, Principal noted that in agreeing to the settlement, the company specifically denied any wrongdoing.

Three things to take from that. It was about life insurance and annuities, not disability. It was 25 years ago. And it settled without an admission.

Other matters exist in the public record and mostly went nowhere. A 2009 putative class action alleging systematic underpayment of out-of-network health claims was voluntarily dismissed by the plaintiff in January 2010. A 2004 Iowa case concerned how demutualisation consideration was allocated.

What about all those law firms advertising “Principal disability lawsuit”? They are real firms doing real work, but their existence is not evidence about Principal specifically. Search any large disability insurer’s name plus “lawsuit” and you will find the same pages. Denied-claim litigation is a substantial legal specialism, and every major carrier appears in it.

Principal’s own SEC filings state plainly that it is regularly involved in litigation, primarily as a defendant. That sentence appears in the filings of essentially every large insurer, because it is true of all of them.

The honest summary: Principal’s litigation history does not single it out among major insurers, and none of the significant public cases concern disability claim handling. If you want a comparative measure of how a carrier treats customers, look at the NAIC Complaint Index for Principal Life Insurance Company on your state’s Department of Insurance site, and at AM Best for financial strength. Those are the objective tools. A law firm’s landing page is marketing.

Is Voya or Principal Better?

Neither is better in the abstract, and the comparison is a little lopsided.

Both write group disability for employers, and that is where most people encounter either name. For individual disability insurance, Principal is one of the Big 5 carriers writing true own-occupation coverage for professionals. Voya is not usually grouped there.

So the answer depends entirely on what you are buying. If your employer offers one of them, you do not have a choice to make, and the comparison is academic. If you are buying individual coverage, Principal belongs on your shortlist alongside Ameritas, Guardian, MassMutual and The Standard.

Compare the actual contract language and price on your own quote rather than the brand. In individual disability, the definition of disability decides your claim, and it is written per-policy.

What Are the Big 5 Disability Insurance Companies?

Ameritas, Guardian, MassMutual, Principal, and The Standard. They earn the label because they write true own-occupation coverage with specialty-specific language, which pays full benefits if you cannot perform your own occupation even while earning elsewhere.

Where Principal tends to stand out within that group: a high maximum issue limit, benefit periods reaching further than some competitors, gender-neutral pricing that can favour women against carriers that price them higher, and mid-tier pricing overall.

Where it can lose: the own-occupation wording question above, and the state-specific gaps in specialty language.

And “who is the largest disability insurance company?” That is generally Unum. But size is market share, not contract quality, and Unum is not one of the Big 5 for individual own-occupation coverage. Biggest and best answer different questions.

Principal Disability Insurance Reviews on Reddit

Forum sentiment on Principal is thin, and that is informative in itself.

Individual disability insurance is bought once, usually through an advisor, and most buyers never claim. So there is very little to post about. The discussion that does exist tends to be advisors comparing contract language rather than customers describing outcomes, which is genuinely more useful anyway.

Group disability threads follow the pattern of every carrier: people who were paid say nothing, people who were denied say a great deal. That is not a Principal phenomenon.

If you want signal rather than noise, skip the star ratings and check two things: the NAIC Complaint Index for Principal Life on your state’s DOI website, which measures complaints against market share, and the definition of disability in your own policy. Those two will tell you more than a hundred reviews.

Principal Disability Insurance Quote and Cost

Principal does not publish rates, and neither will we, because individual disability insurance is medically and financially underwritten and any figure would mislead you.

Your premium moves with occupation class, and Principal uses eight of them. It also moves with age, gender, state, health, benefit amount, elimination period, benefit period, and riders. Issue ages generally run 18 to 60 for single-life cases and 18 to 64 for multi-life.

Two structural notes worth knowing:

Gender-neutral pricing. Principal has been reported as pricing without a gender differential, which can save female professionals meaningfully against carriers that rate women higher for disability. Worth quoting specifically if that is you.

No fee for monthly payments. A small thing that some carriers charge for.

Get quotes from all five Big 5 carriers through an independent broker. Pricing for the same person on the same day routinely varies by 20% or more across them, and a captive agent can only show you one shelf.

The Honest Read: Who Principal Suits

If you already have Principal through your employer, your job is not to evaluate the company. It is to file correctly and on time. File STD within 30 days of your disability date. File LTD by halfway through the elimination period. Use 800-245-1522, and understand that ERISA governs your appeal rights. If you get denied, get advice early, because a court will later be limited to the administrative record.

If you are buying individual coverage as a professional, Principal earns its place on the shortlist. It has A+ financial strength and is one of only five carriers writing true own-occupation. Benefit periods are flexible. And gender-neutral pricing can genuinely beat competitors for women.

Do not buy on the brand. Buy on the definition. Get the definition of disability in writing, confirm whether true own-occupation is in your base contract or needs a rider, and confirm it applies in your state. The sources disagree, which is exactly why you check your own paperwork.

If your claim has been denied, the Big 5 label will not help you. Check whether ERISA applies, note the appeal deadlines in your denial letter, and speak to a licensed attorney in your state. Do not let an appeal window lapse while you research.

Final Word on Principal Disability Insurance

Principal is a solid, long-established insurer with an A+ rating and a place among the five carriers that write proper own-occupation coverage. That is a real endorsement and we are happy to make it.

But “is Principal good?” is the wrong question, because there are two Principals. The one your employer bought is a group plan governed by federal law. That law strips out juries, punitive damages and most discovery. The one you buy yourself is a contract you own, in a state court system that treats you as a customer rather than a plan participant.

Work out which one you have. Then file on time, get the definition in writing, and keep 800-422-3788 or 800-245-1522 somewhere you can find it on a bad day.

FAQs

Is Principal a good disability insurance company?

By objective measures, yes. Principal Life holds an A+ (Superior) financial strength rating from AM Best and is one of only five carriers writing true own-occupation coverage for professionals. The caveats are that sources disagree on whether true own-occupation needs a rider, and specialty-specific wording is reportedly unavailable in a few states.

Is Principal a legitimate company?

Yes. Principal Life Insurance Company was founded in 1879, is headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, is part of the publicly traded Principal Financial Group, and holds an A+ (Superior) rating from AM Best. It also offers retirement solutions, asset management, and group benefits.

What is the Principal disability insurance phone number?

It depends on your policy type. Individual disability claims are 800-422-3788, open 7:30am to 5:00pm CST. Group short-term and long-term disability claims are 800-245-1522. General life and disability customers can use 800-247-9988, and Spanish assistance is 800-243-1404.

What is the Principal disability insurance claims address?

Individual disability claims go to Principal Life Insurance Company, Individual Disability Claims, 711 High Street, Des Moines, IA 50392. Group life and disability claims go to PO Box 14472, Des Moines, IA 50306-3472. The two routes are separate, so sending paperwork to the wrong one causes delays.

How do I file a Principal disability insurance claim?

For group claims, log in at principal.com or email the completed form to SBDClaims@principal.com or fax 800-255-6609. For individual claims, call 800-422-3788 and Principal will email or mail forms to you. Individual claims also involve a phone interview that Principal says cannot be waived.

How long does it take to get your money from Principal?

Principal’s stated goal is a short-term disability decision within 14 days of receiving the claim, and an initial status letter within 10 business days on individual disability claims. Payment follows approval by direct deposit or check, and those are goals rather than guarantees.

How often does Principal short-term disability pay?

Payment is made by direct deposit or mailed check after approval, and you can view payment details in the STD payment report in your principal.com account. Pregnancy claims are an exception and are paid as a lump sum after delivery rather than during the leave.

When should I file a Principal disability claim?

File a short-term disability claim as soon as possible but no more than 30 days before your date of disability. File a long-term disability claim no later than halfway through your LTD elimination period, since waiting for the elimination period to finish is a common and costly mistake.

Does Principal withhold taxes from disability benefits?

Not by default. Principal does not withhold state or federal tax unless you request it, though FICA is withheld for six months from your last day worked. Ask for withholding up front if you would rather not face the bill at tax time.

What is Principal Income Protector?

Income Protector (Series 700) is Principal’s current individual disability policy, launched May 1, 2023 to replace the HH750 series. As of October 2024 it is sold in every state except California and New York, where HH750 is still offered, so many older reviews describe a policy most people cannot buy.

What is the lawsuit against Principal Financial Group?

There is no single famous disability lawsuit. The question likely traces to a 2000 sales practices class action covering about 960,000 life insurance and annuity holders, settled for $374 million with Iowa court approval in early 2001, in which Principal specifically denied wrongdoing. It concerned life and annuity sales, not disability claims.

Is Voya or Principal better for disability insurance?

It depends on what you are buying. Both write group disability through employers, where you rarely get a choice anyway. For individual disability, Principal is one of the Big 5 carriers writing true own-occupation coverage for professionals, and Voya is not usually grouped there.

What are the Big 5 disability insurance companies?

Ameritas, Guardian, MassMutual, Principal, and The Standard. They earn the label by writing true own-occupation coverage with specialty-specific language, which pays full benefits if you cannot perform your own occupation even while earning income elsewhere.

Does Principal cover paternity or adoption leave?

No. Short-term disability covers your own medical condition, so it does not pay for time off for paternity, surrogacy, or adoption leave. Those are separate benefits and may be available through paid family leave programmes instead.

Does ERISA affect my Principal disability claim?

It does if your coverage came through your employer, and the effect is significant. ERISA claims have no jury trials, no punitive damages, very limited discovery, and judges often defer to the insurer’s own decision. Policies you bought yourself outside an employer are not subject to those limits.

About the Author

The InsuranceGuidances Editorial Team writes and fact-checks insurance guides, led by an editor with 16 years of experience in banking and insurance. Our standing rule is zero fabrication: every phone number, address and figure on this page traces to a named source, and we name the trade-offs rather than the selling points. This article is general information and not financial or legal advice. Reviewed July 2026.

Sources

US Department of Labor, ERISA claims procedures: https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/health-plans/erisa

Principal, Help with insurance (individual claims contacts and timelines): https://www.principal.com/help/help-individuals/help-insurance

Principal, Help for businesses (group claims process): https://www.principal.com/help/help-businesses

Principal, Find a form for individuals (claims addresses and phone directory): https://www.principal.com/help/help-individuals/tax-center/find-form

Principal, Service and support: https://www.principal.com/contact-us

Principal Advisors, Disability insurance claims process: https://advisors.principal.com/wps/portal/advisor/existing-business/claims/disability-insurance

Principal, Individual Disability Income (HH750) occupation and product guide: https://www.resourcebrokerage.com/pdfs/di/products/individual/principal_occ_guide.pdf

Protuity, Principal Disability Insurance Review (Income Protector launch and availability): https://protuity.com/insurance-companies/principal/

MedMoneyGuide, Principal Disability Insurance Review 2026: https://medmoneyguide.com/guides/principal-disability-insurance-review

LeverageRx, Principal Physician Disability Insurance Review: https://www.leveragerx.com/physician-disability-insurance/principal-review/

Principal Financial Group, SEC Form 10-K and 10-Q litigation disclosures: https://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-edgar?action=getcompany&CIK=0001126328&type=10-K

Evans Law Firm, Principal Life Insurance Company sales practices settlement: https://www.evanslaw.com/practice-areas/annuities-fraud/annuities-fraud-company/principal-life-insurance-company/

NAIC, Consumer Insurance Search and complaint data: https://content.naic.org/consumer.htm

AM Best, insurer financial strength ratings: https://web.ambest.com/home