Filing for Long-Term Care Benefits Under Your Policy
The long-term care insurance policy under which you are filing for benefits is what governs your claim for benefits. Thus, it is crucial that you obtain a complete copy of your long-term care policy prior to filing a claim for benefits.
Your policy includes legally binding terms and provisions that are written by attorneys for the insurance company. It is very important that you first review your policy closely and understand its terms and requirements prior to filing a claim for benefits.
The long-term care insurance attorneys at Disability Insurance Law Group become involved as early as prior to ever filing a claim for benefits. We can prevent problems with your long-term care insurance claim before they begin, and we can navigate the claims process for you so that your benefits are paid quickly.
We offer long-term care attorneys who have significant skill, experience and knowledge in insurance benefits law, and who exclusively represent individuals in their pursuit of disability, life and long-term care insurance benefits. We provide personalized attention, and keep you apprised at every stage of the process. It begins with understanding what your insurance contract requires. Contact one of our Florida offices to schedule a free contract review by an experienced insurance lawyer.
Understanding Your Long-Term Care Insurance Policy
It is important to be aware that long-term care policies require that you provide the insurance company with notice and proof of claim within strict time periods. Once you provide adequate notice of your claim, your insurance company is required to send you claim forms (also called the application for benefits) within a certain period of time. It is then your responsibility as the claimant to provide adequate proof of your entitlement to insurance benefits within the required time periods. Your failure to do so will likely result in a denial of your claim. Thus, it is necessary that you act quickly when your need for long-term care benefits arises.
The Application for Benefits
The claims process can be a difficult, frustrating and confusing process. An application for benefits can be one of the most important documents in filing an insurance claim. It can help or haunt you throughout the entire claim. These applications are written by insurance companies to benefit insurance companies.
While it may look like a simple form, it is often created to illicit certain information and to discourage a full description of your limitations and restrictions. An application for benefits should never be taken lightly. Insurance companies often misconstrue and take information contained on these forms out of context to deny claims. Our experienced lawyers guide clients through the process and thoroughly review all documents before they are submitted to the insurance company.
The Interview Process
Insurance companies often require an in-person or telephone interview with a claimant early on in the process. Insurance companies spend an enormous amount of time and energy training their claims examiners and investigators on how to handle a claim. They understand how to ask questions that will illicit information that can later be misconstrued or taken out of context. This frequently provides insurance carriers with the ammunition needed to deny or delay payment of a claim. We do not allow our clients to attend an in-person or telephone interview without our presence. We fully prepare our clients for what they will face prior to the interview and limit the interviewer’s ability to ask ambiguous and unfair questions.
Let One of Our Long-Term Care Insurance Attorneys Fight for You
The insurance company is trained to have no empathy for your situation. At the end of the day, insurance companies are in business to make money. They are worried more about their bottom line, rather than the insurance coverage they promise. The more premiums that they accept, and the more claims they deny, the greater they will profit as a business.
The insurance company trains its employees to treat a person filing a claim as a paper file, and not a person, and to deny claims for any arguable reason. The person filing an insurance claim is not to be trusted and is scrutinized as a fraud. This is reality. However, we understand that you paid significant money in premiums to protect yourself and your family for exactly the situation you are facing. You never wanted to have to use this type of insurance and you certainly are not looking for “handouts,” even though the insurance company treats you as if you are.
The attorneys at Disability Insurance Law Group are dedicated to evening the playing field for our clients. We use our experience in handling complex insurance benefit matters to guide our clients through the process and vigorously fight to protect our clients’ rights. We handle long-term care insurance claims with large and small insurance carriers, including: Aetna, American Republic, Bankers Life and Casualty, Berkshire Life, Conseco, Continental Casualty Company (CCC), Genworth (GE), John Hancock, Knights of Columbus, MassMutual, MedAmerica, MetLife, Mutual of Omaha, Northwestern, New York Life, Penn Treaty American, Prudential Financial, State Farm, Unum and others.
Contact Disability Insurance Law Group for Comprehensive Help
The team at Disability Insurance Law Group has the skill, experience and dedication to stand up for you and fight for your right to the full long-term care insurance benefits to which you are entitled under your policy. Contact us today by email for a free consultation, or call our offices at 954-989-9000.