Friday Q&A
The Hartford never sent me forms for my annual update, should I call them and request? Actually no. You do not have to do The Hartford’s job for them. As a general rule, “Only give an insurance company what they ask for” applies here, and nothing...
The Hartford – WHAT Customer Service?
In the past I considered MetLife to be a “raising the dead” company when it came to Customer Service, but in recent times, it looks like The Hartford is the top grave exhumation company when you want to speak to someone to ask questions or resolve...
So You Want To Speak Directly To An Insurance Company?
Part of the training of your average claims handler includes something I call SIL, or “selective interpretative listening”. It is presumed by the industry that there is a difference between what insureds actually say, and what the words mean in terms of...
My Doctor Won’t Cooperate. What now?
Disability insurance companies deserve high marks for intimidation of treating physicians, and, they’ve been doing it for a long time. For years, treating physicians were cooperative with insurers and basically gave in to requests to return their patients to...
Objective vs. Subjective Proof of Claim
One of the most important criteria used by insurance companies to deny claims, or I’m sure they would say, “evaluate claims”, is to apply the Objective Evidence Standard even when very few actual insurance policies/Plans require the Objective...
The Importance Of Functional Capacity In Private Disability
If I were to ask my readers what they thought the single most factor is to a successful claim review, most would probably respond, “Restrictions and Limitations”. However, that’s not the case. FUNCTIONAL CAPACITY for work is THE most important factor...
Life Insurance Losses Increase Disability Claim Risk Management
Many of you know that I’ve maintained my connections with attorneys, who when I touch bases with them, share information from their experiences as I do as well. In most instances I share that information with my readers and clients. Recently, I’ve been...
Prepare For Summer Surveillance – It’s Out There
Summer is on the horizon and so are up coming holidays such as Memorial Day, Fourth of July and Labor Day. To say that visual surveillance will certainly be out there is probably an understatement. Although I’ve written many detailed articles about surveillance,...
Underwriting And Incontestability – A Real Issue
One of the most investigated issues dealing with IDI claims is “incontestability”, a provision in nearly all IDI insurance contracts preventing insurance companies from rescinding policies in effect more than two years because of misinformation....
What File Review Actually Looks Like
Insurance companies are continuously sending out letters to insureds stating,“We are currently reviewing your LTD disability claim and have determined we need additional information”. This one sentence seems to cause a great deal of stress and anxiety because...
Pay Back The SSDI Overpayment
Attorneys are sharing with me that they are receiving quite a few calls from insureds asking whether they have to pay back their SSDI overpayment to insurers. While it may be understandable on some level due to our horrible economy, DCS has always taken the view that...
The AFLAC Quack
In the 25 years I’ve been managing disability claims, I’ve run across AFLAC on several occasions. In my opinion, AFLAC is one of the worst insurance companies simply because they don’t cover much. Some insureds believe the company covers total...
Claimify
Despite my previous posts about Claimify, I received as many as 20 calls this past week from claimants who were still unsure of what to do with the company’s requests for SSDI information. It seems as though both Unum and Lincoln are using Claimify to chase...
Don’t Wait Until It’s Too Late
Recently, Unum placed a claim on its 1st Qtr. target list, but the claimant waited until last week to contact me. Before I could begin to assist, Unum denied the claim. It was just too late. The objective of a Claims Consultant is to assist in supporting the claim to...
Remembering Tricks Of The Trade
I had a telephone call the other day that quickly reminded me of old times and some of the credibility tricks claims handlers use to catch insureds in untruths or exaggerations. One of the biggest mistakes insureds can make is underestimating the ingenuity of the...
Settlements – Consider Carefully
Sometime ago I wrote a lengthy brochure regarding disability claim settlements and although it initially received some attention, during COVID, interest on the subject seemed to fade away. However, the subject of insurance settlement is back on the table for Unum, and...
Unum Being Good
Every now and then it happens that some claims handler somewhere inside Unum does something that actually helps insureds. It’s during these rare moments that I make a special effort to recognize the king of mean caught in an unusual act of kindness. Just...
DCS Donate Button
A recent DCS website update will also include a “Donate” button allowing insured readers the opportunity of keeping Lindanee’s Blog and DCS continuing to write articles and provide services to insureds who are not clients. In the past, I’ve...
Unum’s Harassing Requests for Documents -There’s Never An End
Now that we are into the first quarter of 2022, Unum has obviously resurrected its egregious claims practices with frequest requests for more and more documentation. Although the company presents with several administrative problems, such as losing and not updating...
DCS Website Update
I want to take this opportunity to thank all of my readers who contacted me recently with positive feedback about Lindnee’s Blog. I appreciate the comments and taking time to let me know how valuable the site is to you. The DCS Website located at:...
