Recently, several claimants reported to me that The Hartford denied their claims, without any warning, and proceeded to be as rude as possible during the “notification” phone call. I’m really sorry claimants have to go through this, but The Hartford’s behavior doesn’t suprise me a bit.
The Hartford has always been an aggressive insurance company to deal with second only to Unum. But, while Unum’s reps are nice at times, while at the same time stabbing claimants in the back, the Hartford has always been quite upfront about their rudeness, and makes no cover for its intent and purposes.
The phone call I received yesterday was from a female claimant who told me the rep said, “We decided we aren’t going to pay you anymore.” The claimant, upset by the suddenness of the decision asked why she hadn’t been give a warning, or time to make things right. The rep replied, “We don’t have to do that!” The claimant told me The Hartford requested an IME several months ago, but she never heard anything back.
The Hartford’s internal processes, (as far as I am aware) assigned at least three people to every claim, one of which was an investigative/surveillance rep. The company didn’t negotiate repayment of SSDI overpayments either and immediately referred each claimant to a collection agency right away. Unlike all other integrated group policies, The Hartford actually offsets SSDI COLA, a really cheap shot to claimants. It’s easy to see how aggressive and unmoving The Hartford really is.
The Hartford is also unlike Unum in that it is not known to be a “settlement” opportunity. The Hartford offers lump sum settlements only rarely and then doesn’t provide the math back-up of its offer.
The origins of The Hartford’s hardness was somewhat understandable since most of its management came from terminated or transitioned Unum employees who brought many of Unum’s bad habits with them. Still, it seems that The Hartford has gotten worse over the years, and its employees seem to think they can speak to claimants any way they want to.
For those Hartford employees who may be reading this article, let me suggest a better way of making a denial notification call. Here it is…..
“Hello, Mrs. Smith. I wanted to make sure you received a call from me letting you know that The Hartford will be terminating your claim on {this date} During our review process, your claim was medically reviewed and it was determined by our resources that there are no restrictions and limitations that are preventing you from returning to work.I apologize for not contacting you sooner, but I will be sending you a letter with the details. In the meantime, if you have any questions please feel free to contact me and I’ll be happy to answer your questions.”
Claimants might not like the message, but it will have been delivered kindly.
The Hartford claimants and insureds should approach the management of their claims with extreme caution. To save yourself angst about the rudeness, request all communications in writing and STICK TO IT. Reps won’t usually insult you in writing.
