A sizable minority of today’s workers will suffer from disabling illnesses or injuries at some point during their working years. In order to have a financial safety net, some workers choose to take out long-term disability insurance policies. Long-term disability insurance can provide terrific protection to workers who become ill or injured and are unable to return to their former jobs. The experienced team of attorneys at Osterhout Berger Disability Law are proud to help Orlando, Florida residents with their long-term disability claims.
Appealing a Denial of LTD Benefits
If you apply for benefits through your long-term disability insurance, you may be shocked if your claim is denied. It is common for insurance companies to deny claims for benefits. They do so in order to minimize their losses. It is important that you do not simply give up when you receive a denial letter. Read the letter carefully as it will explain why the company denied your claim and the process that you have available to you for appealing the denial, including the deadline for filing your appeal. It is important for you to follow the process and to meet the deadline so that you will not be barred from filing a claim for benefits in the future.
What to Do and What to Avoid
There are multiple things that you should do and that you should not do when you are appealing a denial of your claim for long-term disability benefits. The first thing that you should do is to request a complete copy of the file that your insurance company has compiled for your claim. This file will include all of the evidence that your company relied on to support its denial. You should review the information and your policy. It is important for you to seek help from the experienced team of attorneys at Osterhout Berger Disability Law with your appeal. Our knowledgeable lawyers can help you to collect and submit as much favorable evidence as possible to your file. This is important because if you exhaust your company’s internal appeals, the evidence that you can use in a future lawsuit will be limited to whatever is contained in your claim file.
So that you have a record of all of your communication with the company, it is important that you refrain from speaking with the company via telephone as much as possible. Instead, communicate with the company in writing, using return receipt, certified mail. Make sure to keep copies of all of the documents that you send to the company as well as the information the company sends to you.
Getting the Disability Benefits you Deserve
When you are working with one of the experienced attorneys at Osterhout Berger Disability Law, there are several things that we will ask you to do in order to help you to get the benefits to which you should be entitled. It may be tempting to give up and to stop seeing your doctor. Instead, it is very important for you to keep all of your scheduled medical appointments and to follow the recommended follow-up treatments. This helps to build the medical evidence that supports the validity of your claim.
Your attorney may also ask you to submit to additional medical examinations and to obtain statements from your doctor, family and former employer about how the condition that you have has limited you. We will work to build as much strong evidence on your behalf to increase the likelihood that your appeal will be granted before it ever leaves the company. We will also ask that you are completely honest about your condition and the limitations it poses. If you exaggerate your symptoms, your company may believe that you are malingering, making it much more difficult for you to prevail on your appeal. Contact Osterhout Berger Disability Law to learn more about your rights and to schedule your consultation.