I have gone through the forum and your blog posts on lump sum payout and issues with LTD settlement.
I am on LTD for more than 12+ years and CPPD and reaching 60 soon. I have requested the possibiltity of settlement with the insurer.
I understand it’s not beneficial to ask for a settlement in approved long duration LTD. However, I initiated the request due to personal living situation.
I did the Present Value (PV) calculation with the help of an Actuary
I received an offer ( no tax) roughly 20% of PV which is approximately just over 3 years worth of payment.
I read some where that if the settlement discussion is not initiated by the insurance company, the offer won’t be more than 5 years of LTD payments. I was expecting at least 4 to 5 years worth of yearly payments or 40 to 50% of PV and not the typical insurance initiated settlement in the range of 65%
Based on communication so far, it seems that insurer offer amount is not going to change. Considering this, I have the following questions:-
Does getting my complete file under privacy request help in understanding how my settlement request was evaluated? Will I be able to see their present value calculation, additional factors in arriving at the $ figure or will those be shaded?
Does asking for complete file at this stage cause any issues?
Can I make a counter offer stating the (lowest ) amount that I am willing to consider?
As the request is initiated by me, Is it mandatory to accept the $ amount offered?
What are the repercussions of not accepting the offer and willing to continue with the monthly payments?
I’m not a lawyer.
1,2 - no idea but it seems safe to ask for your file.
Sure you can but you said you don’t think their offer will change.
They have no reason to settle.
It is a large $ amount for them now or a small amount each month.
I personally would rather pay the smaller amount over time.
Plus maybe they think you’ll die before they pay the full term.
4 - no
5 - nothing I can think of, stop communicating with them.
You can still get the free consult with Resolute.
They might give you advice or refer you to a lawyer in your area. @David_Brannen
PS!
Poking the bear (ie. asking the insurance company anything) causes someone to reopen your claim to look at it.
You are not going to get access to their docs and calculations re their offer to you. It will not be in your claim file. Those docs would be of no value to you anyways and won’t change their position.
5 years is more of a max you will see in these offers, rather than typical. The type of offer you got is more typical in my experience. They use many factors in making an offer, the PV is only one consideration for them.
You are not obligated to accept their offer. You can make a counter offer but you have no leverage so they may just say take or leave their first offer.
There are no repercussions for just carrying on with monthly payments.
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.
