A successful long-term disability claim will provide you with the money you need to sustain yourself while you deal with your disability. A failed long-term disability claim can result in unpaid bills and further consequences from not having the money you need. When filing your long-term disability claim, you need to know how to do it correctly. 

Keep Records of All Communication with Long-Term Disability Insurance Provider

Before you submit your claim, and throughout the claims process, you will be communicating with your long-term disability insurance provider. During this process, you want to make sure that you record all communications. You may receive emails, snail mail, phone conversations, and even in-person conversations.

You need to keep a log that provides the date and time of all communications, as well as the content of the communication. Print out emails and copy letters and add them to the log. Record conversations and save the audio files or write detailed notes about all conversations after you have them.

These communication logs can be really important if you end up needing legal assistance with your claim. When in doubt about if you should record something, always record it in your log in as much detail as possible.

Read Over Your Insurance Policy

Next, you need to get a copy of your long-term disability insurance policy. You need to read over your insurance policy very carefully and make sure that you understand the policy in full. You need to understand the timelines for filing a claim and make sure that you follow them. You need to understand how your specific policy defines disability. You should hire a long-term disability claim attorney to review the insurance policy and help you with your claim. You don't want your claim to be denied because you missed a deadline or misunderstand a certain term and how it applies to your situation.

Get Together All Your Medical Records

When you file your long-term disability claim, you are going to need to provide medical records that relate to the disability behind the claim. However, you may also be asked to provide more extensive medical records regarding your past medical history. That is why it is best to just gather up all of your medical records to begin with, so that if you need them, you already have digital copies of them on hand.

If you have a long-term disability claim you are working on, hire an attorney to assist you. Go over the insurance policy, record all contact you have with your long-term insurance provider, and get your medical records together. You want to protect and educate yourself throughout this process, as it can have a large impact on your ability to properly take care of yourself.

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