Ohio Long-Term Disability Insurance Denial Lawyer

Top Reasons for Denied Long-Term Disability Claims

Insurance providers find all sorts of ways to deny ERISA long-term disability claims.

• They employ medical reviewers to look at your file and say your health problems aren’t serious enough to qualify for disability. These reviewers are doctors, giving this assessment credibility even if it’s biased toward the insurer saving money.
• They have their own employees write reports on your job abilities that present a highly selective picture of what you need to do for work—misinterpreting your job duties or overestimating your current capabilities.
• Your insurer may resort to surveilling you and checking your social media posts to see if you’re doing anything that contradicts the information in your long-term disability claim about your physical limitations.
• They could argue you didn’t do enough to treat your health issues, stick to plans laid out by your doctor, and collect enough medical evidence to prove your case.

Now you need to be careful about the next steps.

Responding by calling them or sending a letter saying you disagree with their rejection could be taken as your “official” appeal—but it’s not enough.

Have an experienced long-term disability denial lawyer step in and stop them from brushing off your claim.

You need to understand how ERISA regulations work and get started on a proper long-term disability appeal.

Talk to our Ohio ERISA appeals lawyers.

You pay no attorney fee until you win benefits.

What Should I Do to Build a Long-Term Disability Appeal?

Be ready to act quickly if you’ve been denied long-term disability benefits. ERISA insurance plans have tight deadlines, usually allowing 180 days to appeal.

That can seem like a lot of time, but the days can pass by quickly as you work on your ERISA appeal. 

You should get started on your response right away and follow these steps: 

Step #1: Review your rejection letter.

Your rejection letter could outline reasons why you were denied long-term disability benefits. This can give you an idea of where to start, but the letter is often vague and unhelpful. Your lawyer can analyze the insurance company’s communication and determine what evidence you need to counter them.

Step #2: Request your full file.

Under ERISA regulations, you have the right to request a complete copy of your claim file from your insurance company. 

This contains all the information your insurer used to deny your claim, including your medical records and vocational assessments, but that’s not all. 

Your file can also contain internal communications, like correspondence between medical reviewers and claims adjusters, and plan documents that outline your insurer’s rules, exclusions and definitions of “disability.”

All of this can help you figure out what logic your insurance company used to reject your original long-term disability benefits claim. 

Step #3: Organize your evidence.

Once you have information about why your long-term disability claim was denied, get ready to add more evidence to your file and make your case more convincing on appeal. 

Some items that help include: 

• Updated medical records
• Functional capacity evaluations
• Disability statements from your doctor
• Vocational assessments that show you cannot function in workplace settings

You can’t just sue your insurer because they denied your claim. You must go through the insurance company’s own appeal process first—that’s one of the main rules for ERISA plans.

An Ohio long-term disability denial lawyer from HNB Law can help you with every step of this process.

Don’t leave your appeal, and your effort to protect your economic stability and the life you’ve built, to chance.

Contact HNB well before your 180-day appeal deadline.