Does anyone know how long the insurer generally takes to pay out a retroactive salary increase (lump sum) while on LTD? A contract was signed and the dates have come and gone for fellow employees to receive their retro pay, however no word from either the insurer or employer on how long it takes for those on LTD. Anyone have a past experience with this?
Is the insurer aware of the retroactive salary increase?
I would give them a call.
It would depend on many things how long it would take.
It’ll take forever if nobody is doing it.
Call.
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Yes, they are aware, and have a canned response with no timeliness (aka “Good luck, we’ll do it when we get to it!”) I was wondering if anyone had had similar experience and was curious as to what their timeframe had been. 
Depends on the insurance company but mine says in 2022 
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Still no estimated date. One thing I am concerned about that no one (insurer, employer…) seems to be able to clarify, is part of a posting that I read that states:
"The following plan members are eligible for benefit adjustments to reflect the retroactive increase in annual salary in their new collective agreements:
Plan members who were approved for disability benefits and who received their first payment on or after the effective date of their new collective agreement."
I don’t 100% know if my first payment for LTD was considered on/after the date, as I had to take my insurer to court and got a lump sum payment over a year after I went on leave.
I guess I’m wondering why that time frame would matter - my LTD was based on my salary, and my salary was retroactively increased in the agreement. Quite frankly I’d feel pretty cheated if that amount wasn’t adjusted to reflect it. 
Does the insurance policy actually say that?
If it does then (I am not a lawyer) it sounds like you’re screwed.
I would be talking to a lawyer.
Good luck.
Because it was a way to make the policy cheaper for the employer.
Blame them.
Oh, it’s a certified barrel of laughs as far as all of them are concerned, really. The lack of clarification from either is pretty standard in my experience. No less frustrating.
My lawyer was fantastic, so if it comes to it I can always run it by him. It is likely not be worth the fee however, being a somewhat “small” amount in the entire picture. Glad to have a forum where people understand the frustrations, just sorry that we experience it.
That’s a healthy way to look at it.
Generally speaking, retroactive increases are not passed on to employees on LTD benefits. If the retroactive increase came into effect after the person started receiving LTD benefits. I can’t speak to your situation specifically as this is a very technical area and dependent on wording of policy, etc., but that is generally how I have seen it handled. It is very unfair to people on LTD benefits as compared to other employees.
Generally an “effective date” refers to a past or future date when something will take effect. The effective date is not the date when they announce the thing. So, we are informing you today, but it takes effect on x date in past (or future).
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.
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Thanks so much for your response, David. It does seem quite unfair, but I appreciate that you’ve given me more of an answer than either my employer or insurance provider combined have, in over a year. 
I got a retroactive payment because my union and employer were late finalizing the agreement, so everyone was owed retroactive pay increase from the date the agreement should have been signed to when it was implemented.
The portion of time within this period when I was received LTD benefits was impacted, as my benefits would have been higher based on the higher salary.
It took a while but I did get a lump sum covering the retroactive pay increase earlier this year. It was a decent amount I wasn’t expecting so à very nice surprise.
Not sure if this is what OP was asking or if this answers the question but hopefully good information for someone.
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That’s great to hear that you got your retro pay! Were you on LTD already when the agreement “should” have been implemented? At any rate, it’s encouraging to know that some people are benefiting, since you’re right - LTD is based on a percentage of the salary, and if that changes even retroactively, it should “count”. 