Termination of Long-Term Disability Insurance Benefits Explained by Our Disability Insurance Attorneys
Ever since you became qualified to invoke your long-term disability insurance benefits, you and your family have relied upon the payments to cover your bills and maintain your lifestyle. Now the insurance company has either stopped your payments or is threatening to terminate them. You need a strong advocate to help you fight the wrongful termination of your disability insurance benefits.
While the only way we can address your specific issue is for you to undergo a thorough policy review with a Seltzer & Associates Philadelphia disability insurance termination lawyer, the following information should help you understand why the insurance company may be threatening to stop paying you and what you can do about it.
Reasons for Terminating Long-Term Disability Insurance Payments
Insurance companies are always going to look for ways to stop paying out on disability insurance policies, sometimes in bad faith. Here are some of the most common reasons they cite for terminating disability insurance benefits.
Time Limit for Payouts on Certain Mental Disorders and Conditions
Some policies impose limits on how long the insurance company will have to pay when the disability is the result of certain conditions that fall under the mental, nervous or psychological impairment or addictions category. Examples of conditions that might come with a time limit — often 24 months of eligible payments — include:
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Chronic fatigue syndrome
- Post-traumatic stress disorder
- Alcohol or drug addiction
Of course, this is unfortunate — if not even unfair — for people who are disabled due to mental illness. Conditions that are considered to be more severe and debilitating, and that are often attributed to organic causes —dementia, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder — do not usually fall under this exception/limitation.
Time Limits on Payouts for Certain Chronic Conditions
Sometimes, policies will apply a 24-month limitation of benefit payments to certain conditions that produce chronic pain, such as:
Not Invoking Social Security Disability Benefits
Some disability insurance policies — usually those obtained through an employer — require you to apply for Social Security disability insurance (SSDI) benefits so they can offset these payments against your benefits. If the disability insurance company is citing this as a reason to terminate payments, your Philadelphia disability insurance termination lawyer will review your policy to determine whether SSDI is a requirement and, if so, can work with your insurance company to try to resolve the issue.
Discontinuing Treatment Can Lead to a Termination of Disability Insurance
Your insurance carrier will stop your long-term disability payments if you fail to receive regular medical treatment as required by the policy. You are expected to submit proof that you continue to be disabled on a periodic basis, and that proof generally must come from your treating physician.
Engaging in Activities Contrary to Continued Disability
Whether you realize it or not, your long-term disability insurance carrier might have you under surveillance. The insurer’s goal is always to find a reasonable basis to terminate your claim. They are on the lookout for evidence that you are no longer disabled, such as observing your daily activities, which may reveal that your condition has improved to some degree. In addition, if you have been working, they might use this as evidence that you are no longer disabled or that you are otherwise no longer eligible for benefits under the specific terms of your policy.
How a Philadelphia Disability Insurance Termination Lawyer at Seltzer & Associates Can Help
The long-term disability insurance companies are skilled at identifying how and when to dispute disability insurance benefits. They do it often and work to build a case to substantiate a termination of payments. Our nationwide disability attorneys are experienced in successfully fighting the insurance companies for clients all over the country, and will use all means necessary to appeal or litigate a wrongful benefit termination decision. Please contact our office today at 888-699-4222 to speak to a disability insurance termination lawyer.