Disability insurance benefits should kick in the moment you need them. When that doesn’t happen, an El Monte disability attorney can help you understand the issue and get the benefits you deserve.
Disability coverage may feel like a lifesaver, but you might run into the unpleasant situation in which your insurer decides against paying out. While there’s little you can do to prevent an initial claim denial, you can increase your chances of still getting the compensation you need and deserve with the right attorney by your side.
To boost your chance of receiving the coverage you deserve, contact an El Monte disability lawyer at Haffner Law today.
Comparing Short-Term and Long-Term Disability
Although short-term and long-term disability policies are available from private insurers, they have distinct sets of features, each of which we will highlight below:
- Short-Term Disability (STD) – This coverage is meant to provide benefits in the case of temporary health issues or crises, such as injury and pregnancy. Typically, STD coverage only provides benefits to those whose absence from work is expected to be less than a year. Private short-term disability coverage, it must be emphasized, does not necessarily preclude you from also drawing benefits from California’s State Disability Insurance program.
- Long-Term Disability (LTD) – This is coverage intended to provide financial relief for critical or chronic injury expected to last longer than a year. Often, LTD benefit recipients are those who have experienced a permanent disability, such as cognitive decline, disfigurement, or amputation. It should be noted that older LTD claimants are given fewer yearsduring which they may collect benefits.
You can count on disability policies in California offering continuous coverage (unless premiums are unpaid), along with guaranteed renewability (although your premium amount may increase). When insurers treat you unfairly, you may want to consider getting a disability lawyer in El Monte involved.
Reasons Your El Monte Disability Claim May Be Denied
Claims can be denied for a variety of reasons, no matter how reasonable or timely your request is. Common reasons that insurance companies deny El Monte disability claims include the following:
- Written errors on your disability claim form
- Discrepancies between medical history records
LTD policies, in particular, may bar beneficiaries who are able to perform any sort of work—as opposed to their chosen profession—from continuing to receive benefits after a defined period. Some policies may also require that beneficiaries be reevaluated for eligibility after two full years of disability.
An experienced El Monte disability claim lawyer would likely advise that you obtain all medical documentation needed from a physician (e.g., a formal diagnosis of your disability), which you can later provide as evidence of your physical state to your insurer. This way, if the insurer still decides not to pay, you likely have grounds to take the insurer to court with a lawyer’s help.
Contact an El Monte Disability Attorney
Any form of disability, even if it’s only expected to be temporary, can throw you for a loop. When an insurer decides it would rather pad its bottom line than do what’s right, your situation is bound to feel even more disheartening, even if you happen to have spare cash lying around.
Fortunately, you can both get what’s yours and stick it to a dishonest insurer by working with an El Monte disability lawyer at Haffner Law. Call us at 1-844-HAFFNER (423-3637) or fill out the form below to schedule a free consultation today.
