News & Events

Long-Term Disability Benefits: Why The Denial?

Long-term disability benefits may be available to you if you are injured or ill and unable to work.  Insurers pay a specific percentage of your employment salary while you are unable to work. However, entitlement to long-term disability benefits is not guaranteed. Long-term disability benefits may be denied for several reasons and at different stages.

You may be denied long-term disability benefits from the outset because you failed to disclose important information, such as a medical condition, when you first applied for long-term disability coverage. In some cases, long-term disability insurers require you to disclose your medical history and answer questions related to your health. If you fail to disclose all relevant information, and are later injured or ill and apply for long-term disability benefits, insurers can take the position that the long-term disability policy is void due to non-disclosure.

Another common reason you may be denied long-term disability is if your insurer determines that the injury or illness you are suffering from does not prevent you from performing the essential duties of your own occupation.

If you do qualify for long-term disability benefits, you may find that your insurer is denying your benefits at the two year mark. In many policies, the disability test becomes tougher to meet after two years. You have to show that your injury or illness prevents you from performing the duties of any occupation for which you are reasonably suited.

If your long-term disability benefits have been denied, the Personal Injury Lawyers at Oatley Vigmond may be able to help.