A denied disability benefits lawsuit was recently filed by a California woman alleging she was unfairly denied long-term disability (LTD) insurance benefits.

Plaintiff Gwendolyn P., filed the denied disability benefits lawsuit in the Superior Court of California.

According to the denied disability benefits lawsuit, Gwendolyn, a 60-year dental hygienist, became disabled and could no longer perform her job which required her to lean over patients and stay in a fixed position for long periods of time. Gwendolyn says that she purchased the disability insurance policy in the 1990’s. Gwendolyn began to receive LTD benefits in 2009, but she was allegedly denied any continued disability LTD benefits on July 1, 2016.

According to the lawsuit, the denial of LTD benefits was based on a clerical error by her Medical Group that indicated that she could perform her occupation. The letter, completed by her physician’s secretary, checked “yes” to indicate that she could return to work.

After attempting to appeal Unum’s denial for LTD benefits, however, they informed her in May 2017 that their decision was being upheld and that the insurance company’s findings were correct. According to the lawsuit, Unum refused to reinstate her disability benefits even after one of their physicians repeatedly stated that she “could not engage in repetitive bending and had reduced range of motion with pain.”

Gwendelyn asserts that the “[d]efendants never explained what changed regarding Plaintiff’s condition to justify the abrupt denial of her claim.” Gwendolyn says that because of Unum’s wrongful conduct she suffers, mental and emotional distress, anxiety, nervousness, and other general damages.

According to the denied disability benefits lawsuit, Unum never contacted the doctor’s office that mistakenly filled out the form, nor did they properly investigate the claim. The denied disability benefits lawsuit alleges multiple claims including breach of contract, and breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing. Gwendolyn demands a trial by jury.

Unum’s Practice of Denied Disability Benefits

An increasing number of consumers are filing denied disability benefits lawsuits against the America’s largest disability insurance company, Unum Life Insurance Company of America. The company provides short-term and long-term disability insurance and subsidiaries of the company include Provident Life and Accident, First Unum Life, Colonial Life & Accident, and Paul Revere Life Insurance.

Plaintiffs claim that while they qualified for LTD benefits under their insurance policy terms, they were unfairly denied benefits. Lawsuits accuse the company of actions such as the unreasonable delay in claim processing, the underpayment of insurance benefits, and the unfair denial of insurance disability claims.

Allegations against the disability insurance giant go so far as to claim that the company denies consumer disability claims on purpose to increase company revenue and profit. For many consumers filing a denied disability benefits lawsuit is a last case resort, after having exhausted all recourse through appeals for disability benefits. The plaintiffs hope to reverse Unum’s unfair denial for LTD benefits.

The Denied Disability Benefits Lawsuit is Case No. 2:18-cv-00062-KJM-CKD, iin the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California.

Do YOU have a legal claim? Fill out the form on this page now for a free, immediate, and confidential case evaluation. The bad faith insurance attorneys who work with Top Class Actions will contact you if you qualify to let you know if an individual lawsuit or Unum class action lawsuit is best for you. [In general, Unum bad faith lawsuits are filed individually by each plaintiff and are not class actions.] Hurry — statutes of limitations may apply.

Learn More