On the CPP-D application, there is an option to give or not give consent for Service Canada to obtain personal information from a lengthy list of people/organizations (e.g. hospitals, employers, insurance administrators, financial institutions, etc.)
Are there a lot of drawbacks to not giving consent for this? Conversely, if one does give consent, does Service Canada’s use of it tend to be reasonable, or is this the equivalent of signing over a ‘blank cheque’ for one’s personal information?
In theory it is always better to not give this type of consent. Certainly I would never recommend that type of broad consent for any insurance company; however, I have less concerns with Service Canada and in my experience they do not abuse it.
Often they are getting information that can help a person’s claim be approved. If you have the ability to get information on your own and get to them, then it is better not to give the consent. However, if you will struggle to coordinate getting information from doctors, employers, etc, the I recommend people give the consent. Better to have them be able to get the information. You are more likely to get denied if they can’t get information they need to confirm certain things.
That being said, my law firm never gives the consent when we are doing applications on behalf of clients. But this is because we have the resources and systems to get all the needed information quickly. You have to look at what you will be capable of doing.
I hope this helps
David Brannen
Disability Lawyer with Resolute Legal
The response posted above is based on the limited factual information made available and is not intended as a full and complete response to the question. The only reliable manner to obtain complete and adequate legal advice is to consult with a lawyer, fully explain your situation, and allow the lawyer enough time to research the applicable law and facts required to give an adequate opinion. The basic information provided above is intended as a public service only, a full one-on-one discussion with a lawyer should be done before taking any any action. The information posted on this forum is available to the viewing public and is not intended to create a lawyer client relationship with any person. If you want one-on-one advice, please click here to request a free consultation or call toll free 1-877-282-5188 to speak with a member with our disability claim support team.
Thank you very much for the answer.
What does this form mean practically speaking? I notice that they list “financial institutions” in the list of consent but it also says (for address updates only). They really want permission to get my banking info for address updates only?
I think this relates to cheques being returned or direct deposits of benefits failing. They want to be able to contact the bank to try and fix the situation. Believe it or not it is common for people change addresses and not advise CPP disability. So the cheques get returned or deposits fail.
David Brannen
Disability Lawyer with Resolute Legal
The response posted above is based on the limited factual information made available and is not intended as a full and complete response to the question. The only reliable manner to obtain complete and adequate legal advice is to consult with a lawyer, fully explain your situation, and allow the lawyer enough time to research the applicable law and facts required to give an adequate opinion. The basic information provided above is intended as a public service only, a full one-on-one discussion with a lawyer should be done before taking any any action. The information posted on this forum is available to the viewing public and is not intended to create a lawyer client relationship with any person. If you want one-on-one advice, please click here to request a free consultation or call toll free 1-877-917-7050 to speak with a member with our disability claim support team.
Thanks David, I should have clarified that in my case, the form is part of a self-employment reassessment with an adjudicator.