The Standard – Cautions About The Internet…….Again

Over the last year or so I’ve made several posts cautioning insureds and claimants about information on Facebook, Twitter, and ALL discussion and chat groups. I am not aware of the extent readers actually listen to my best recommendations, but I do know a claimant who was recently harmed by an intense on-line investigation conducted by [...]

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Unum Does Not Always Win – A Heart Warming Case Story

Dear Linda, I lived with a cement brick hanging over my head for over a decade. The first time my claim was denied was over ten years ago. It was actually reinstated a few months later, after I appealed. Later I learned that the IME physician UNUM had sent me to had clearly stated that [...]

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DMS Plays Dirty And Invades Medical Practice To Speak With Employees

Disability Management Services, Inc. (DMS) is a company I have had mixed experiences with. There are at least two pretty good claims handlers and managers working for DMS I respect, and then again there are others in the company who immediately presume “red flags” and engage in investigations from hell for no reason. I recently spoke to a DMS claims [...]

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Colorado PERA and Unum’s “Cooperation” Interpretation

Another Unum issue which recently came to my attention involved Unum’s management of the  Colorado Public Employee’s Retirement Association as third-party administrator insisting the claimant meet with a field representative. Unum acts as third-party administrator for several public retirement systems including Colorado and Virginia. Upon inspection of our client’s policy we found the following mentions: “Termination of [...]

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Unum – Persistence and Assistance Pays off After Years of Struggle

By far the most successful disability claim resolution for 2011 (and perhaps an appropriate Christmas story) is that of a DCS, Inc. client CPA from Jersey who received notification from Unum his claim reporting was reduced to yearly reports and his claim was transferred to a new claims handler in the Extended Duration Unit. Let’s call this insured “J”. The significance [...]

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