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Monday, July 5, 2010

Michigan Long-Term Disability-Initial Application phone call

Your initial call to the Long-Term Disability insurance company is very important. You should prepare yourself prior to making the initial phone call. The insurance company will use this first phone call as an opportunity to interview you about: how your disability occurred and what medical treatment you have received; specifics about your job; and your activities of daily living. You should therefore prepare yourself before making the initial phone call. If they call you prior to your initial phone call, you should ask if you could call them back so that you have an opportunity to gather your thoughts. Anytime you talk the insurance company you should be courteous and forthright. Remember no matter how friendly and helpful the claims representative seems, he or she is not on your side. The insurance company employees are not their to help you. An insurance company makes money by collecting premiums and not by paying out benefits.

The most important question you must be prepared to answer from the insurance company is the following: Why were you able to work yesterday, but not today? This is easy to answer in the case of an accident, but not in the case of a progressive illness. Often, an individual becomes slowly and progressively more impaired until they reach a point when they just cannot work any longer. This must be explained to the insurer.

Disability insurance companies will often ask you to describe a "typical" day. This is a trap for claimants who suffer from a condition with variable symptoms. If you have such a condition, you generally have "good" days and "bad" days. You may have days that you stay in bed all day, but you may also have days in which you can perform certain activities. You should tell the insurance company both what you can do on your worst days and what you could do on your better days. Be careful about the terminology that you use.

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