By Ray Bourhis and Alex MacDougall
When you first learn that you have a disability that will interfere with your employment, you have an important decision to make regarding the filing of your claim; whether you should go it alone or whether you should engage the services of a disability insurance attorney to assist you through the process. Unfortunately, the process can trip up claimants very easily and many irreparable mistakes are made by people filing their own claims. For that reason, and especially if your claim has a high PV (Present Value of future benefits) you should contact us before filing.
Why is it important to contact us early on? The answer is simple. Virtually every piece of information you give to your insurer, and the wording used in conveying it, is crucial in determining whether or not your claim is approved. The reason we are able to settle over 98% of our cases within a matter of months is not just because of our track record. It’s also because we don’t make mistakes in the initial stages of a filing. We don’t give insurance companies excuses to view your claim in a negative or harmful light.
We know the ins and outs of the policies, the medical evaluations and the vocational assessments. We understand the legal definition of total disability in your jurisdiction. We have seen medical and other witnesses unintentionally describing facts and circumstances in a way harmful to a claimant.
In addition, claimants acting on their own often find themselves unprepared in answering questions, providing documentation, giving recorded statements or participating in IMEs.
The handling of these, and similar issues, can make the difference in whether a claim is paid or on what basis. Beyond that, if an appeal or suit should become necessary the documentation contained, or not contained, in the file becomes critically important.
