A new Unum lawsuit has been filed by a man claiming that the company is using delay tactics in paying long term disability benefits after he suffered a debilitating stroke that left him permanently disabled.

Plaintiff Leroy S. suffered a stroke in September 2015, which left him permanently disabled and unable to perform the duties of his regular occupation.

Leroy submitted a claim for disability benefits to Unum, received confirmation of Unum’s receipt of his claim, and received notice that Unum had approved the payment of short-term disability benefits. However, Unum has yet to approve Leroy’s claim for long-term disability benefits for which he is covered under his employer’s plan.

According to his disability benefits lawsuit, Unum stated that they would be “extending the time in which we will be making a decision on your Long Term Disability claim until 30 days after we receive a response to our request for necessary information from your employer.”

Leroy claims he received a similar letter again on January 27 and yet again on February 10, and as such, contends that Unum’s failure to provide or make long term disability payments made an “adverse benefit determination” under ERISA regulations. He requested copies of “all documents, records, and other information relevant to [his] claim for benefits”

The Unum lawsuit further states that Unum responded that no such adverse determination was made and that the company was under no obligation to provide the materials Leroy requested.

Due to Unum’s alleged delay tactics in making a determination for long-term disability benefits, Leroy was forced to file an Unum bad faith claim lawsuit.

The Unum Bad Faith Claim Lawsuit is Case No. 3:16-cv-00484-G in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division.

Bad Faith Insurance Tactics

Unum, the nation’s oldest insurance company, formerly known as Unum Provident and First Unum, has been known to systematically deny disability benefits to thousands of policyholders in the past two decades.

Unum and its subsidiaries, including Provident Life, MetLife, The Paul Revere Life Insurance Company, among many others, have been subject to numerous bad faith claim lawsuits for illegally denying to pay valid disability benefits claims.

Unum policy holders have reported that Unum Insurance has improperly denied their claims by:

• Changing policies once claims are filed (without the authorization of knowledge of policy holders)
• Improperly investigating the claim
• Misreading medical records
• Refusing to acknowledge their disability
• Demanding repeated requests for independent medical examinations or denying a claim without any medical examination
• Arguing that the claim is a pre-existing condition
• Denying a claim with the intent to wear the claimant down to lower a settlement
• Partially paying for a claim for total disability
• Use of detectives, friends, co-workers, and neighbors in an attempt to discredit the disability

Unum Disability Benefits Lawsuits

Lawsuits filed against the company allege that Unum committed fraud and breach of contract. Many Unum bad faith claim lawsuits stem from denial of legitimate long-term disability insurance claims—where the insurance company unfairly and improperly failed to compensate the insured for a loss covered by their policy, or unreasonably delayed making payments due under the policy.

Thousands of Unum bad faith claim lawsuits have been filed across the nation by policyholders who have accused the insurance company of unfairly denying disability benefits. In general, the plaintiffs state that they submitted all the required paperwork to prove a disability, but are still denied.