An Alabama dentist is calling for Unum Life Insurance Company of America to reinstate long term disability for him, stating he and his family needed the payments for a survivable income.

He states the company needed to reinstate long term disability benefits because he paid all premiums and his medical condition had not improved since he filed for benefits.

Plaintiff Shane E. is calling for the disability insurance provider to reinstate long term disability after his benefits were terminated after 15 years of receiving benefits. According to the Unum lawsuit, Shane signed up for his disability benefits policy in May 1991 when he was still in dental school.

He signed up for a policy which guaranteed him lifetime benefits if he kept up the payments. Shane says he did this throughout dental school and continued to do so as he practiced dentistry over the next decade.

However after ten years of practicing dentistry, Shane was diagnosed with a degenerative back condition and was forced to cease working. Shane filed a claim for long term disability benefits in 2001, which was approved and would continue to support him and his family.

Overview of Unum Claim Denial

Unum initially required Shane to submit periodic medical reports showing the progress of his medical condition, and continued to provide him long term disability benefits for 15 years. While Shane did find employment in teaching to provide an income for his family, it did not compare to the previous salary he earned as a dentist.

This means that Shane and his family were relying on the disability benefit payments, which made Unum’s decision to deny claim all the more troubling. According to the Unum lawsuit, Shane’s claim for benefits was called for review by the disability provider in July 2015.

Shane was unaware of this at the time, and began experiencing numerous calls and requests for medical reviews of the state of his disability. Each time Shane submitted a review, it stated he would be unable to return to work as a dentist and that his condition would not improve.

The Unum lawsuit alleges the disability provider was looking for any excuse to deny disability benefits, but eventually just reversed their decision to provide him benefits in the first place. According to the Unum lawsuit, the disability provider suddenly declared Shane fit to resume his work as a dentist, without any explanation.

Shane says Unum’s representatives have tried to argue that Shane’s claim is currently under review, but the termination of his benefits stated otherwise. At this point in time, Shane has exhausted all administrative options and is calling for the company to reinstate long term disability benefits.

Unum is one of the oldest and largest disability providers in the United States, providing disability coverage for millions of providers. However, the disability provider has been facing numerous allegations of wrongful claim denial and other bad faith insurance practices, in which policyholders were wrongfully denied coverage.

Shane is one of these policyholders who is calling for the company to reinstate long term disability benefits along with any other relevant damages.

This Unum Lawsuit is Case No. 4:18-cv-00231-VEH,in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama.

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