First of all I would like to say what a great resource this is. I’ve been dealing with a disability and with the insurance companies for 5 years now and have been forced back to work a few times against my doctors advice. It’s been quite a nightmare and I imagine it is for many.
Anyway, here is my (long winded) question. I’ve been on LTD for almost 2 years due to mental illness & chronic pain due to multiple surgeries to treat endometrial cancer. In March my GP told me she received some forms from GWL. She wasn’t comfortable filling them out since she doesn’t follow my mental health that closely so she asked if she could tell the insurance company to send it on to my psychiatrist instead since he’s been the one who has communicated with the insurance company the most. I said sure that was fine. A few weeks later I received a letter from GWL stating that they required my doctor to fill out a questionnaire for them & if I didn’t comply they would cut off my benefits at the end of July. I contacted my case manager at GWL and asked them to send the forms to my psychiatrist. I didn’t hear anything back from them, granted I probably could have followed up with them, but instead mistakenly assumed that since I hadn’t heard anything from them, things got sorted out.
Fast forward to July, I stopped receiving benefits. I contacted my new case manager who told me that since I “refused to fill out their medical questionnaire & “despite multiple attempts to get in touch with me” they cut off my benefits. They have since gotten the medical questionnaire back from 3 of my doctors 5 weeks ago & I’ve left 4 voicemails with my case manager. But now it’s been 3 months since they have payed me. Do I have any legal recourse here? I am receiving CPP-D which they take off of my payments, and they are supposed to be withholding more because of LTD overpayments, but according to their letter, I was still supposed to receive some money from them monthly until I pay them back the overpayments.
Hi, yes you do have legal recourse, but it shouldn’t have to come to that. I recommend you reach out to us (or another disability law firm) for a free consultation as we may be able to give you some direction on steps you can take, short of having to hire a lawyer.
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.
No they aren’t missing any forms now, they have all been filled out by 3 of my doctors & have been for a month but still no payments. I finally got a hold of someone at GWL in Friday & they told me the issue was “complicated” and that he “wouldn’t have an answer for me till Monday”. It’s now end of day Monday and I haven’t heard anything from him.
I would want more explanation than that.
Is it only something they can fix or can you help.
At least you got a hold of GWL that knows what the problem is.