Chronic Back Pain, but Disability Denied

*Please note that all names have been changed to protect the privacy of the individuals mentioned.

Bruno is a stonemason living in the GTA. For 18 years, he operated as a single-person company, employing on-call workers. He is a family man with a young grandchild. After his injured back, he experienced chronic pain that he could not control with treatment. Despite not being able to work, he was denied his disability insurance claim and he needed legal help from a disability lawyer to secure his long term disability benefits. This is his story and how we were able to secure his long term disability claim with help from an experienced disability lawyer at Share Lawyers.

Sudden back injury

Over the years, Bruno had learned to deal with back strain from laying stone, operating his stone saw, and various other tasks. Yet, when lifting and rocking his infant grandchild, Bruno's back seized. His chronic pain was now much worse than ever and didn’t go away with rest and mild pain medication. His doctor ordered tests and found multiple spinal disc herniations. She recommended surgery, as well as treatment from various medical treatment providers, and said that Bruno shouldn't work as a stonemason anymore.

This news was very upsetting to Bruno. In addition to the chronic pain in his back, the sudden disruption of his career and lifestyle, and the loss of his livelihood brought on depression and difficulty sleeping. With surgery pending, he took painkillers, antidepressants, and sleeping pills. Now more inactive than he’d ever been in the past, he also began to gain weight.

Fortunately, Bruno had purchased a private long term disability insurance policy years earlier and had been paying into it for many years. He knew that if the worst happened, his disability claim would be an income replacement if he could not perform his own job before age 65.

Varied income leads to confusion around benefits

Bruno had earned around $4,000 or more per month in prior years, including when he bought the policy. In the year before his back injury, though, Bruno had been turning down some work because of his sore back. This resulted in an average monthly income below $4,000 over several months. After he applied for his long term disability benefits, the insurance company refused to pay him the full amount of his disability claim. To qualify for this monthly income replacement, Bruno had to prove that he was earning that income just prior to his injury. The case manager at the insurance company even suggested that Bruno had chosen to work less before submitting his claim because he wanted to slow down. Bruno could not believe that his disability claim was being denied. What had he been paying his money into for so many years?

Referral renews hope

When Bruno's cousin heard of Bruno's long term disability insurance benefits being denied, she referred him to the long term disability lawyers at Share Lawyers. Our lawyers reviewed Bruno's insurance policy, disability claim, and medical reports. It was found that the insurer had interpreted the provisions of his policy extremely narrowly and misapplied certain sections - possibly to make his claim difficult and get him to give up.

After receiving a denial of legitimate disability claims, many people feel like giving up - that the only option is to go back to work. The fact is, we pay into long term disability claims with every paycheck so that if we become sick we will be protected. To give up after being denied means giving up money you are entitled to and that can help you during this time. Your insurance provider wants you to give up - they are not looking out for your well-being. Don’t let them win. With a disability lawyer from Share Lawyers in your corner, you can get your disability payments without having to deal with your insurance company further.

Good advocacy secures a fair settlement

In this video, President David Share discusses how to fight back when long term disability claims are denied.

After his free consultation, Bruno took a few days to think about his next steps. He had several calls with a disability lawyer from our legal team, and we took him through all of his disability claims options - and he made the decision to hire us. From that time on, Bruno never had to talk to the insurance company or his case manager again. The Share Lawyers law firm took legal action on Bruno's behalf.

Bruno was given a team of three experienced LTD claim lawyers to fight against his insurance company and stand up for his disability rights. Everyone that he spoke to, from his client service lawyer to his litigation lawyers, treated him with respect, compassion, and honesty.

Through a mediation, a favourable settlement was achieved for Bruno. Bruno was relieved that he would not have to deal with the insurance company ever again, and was able to focus on his health and his family.

What our disability lawyers did for Bruno

• We notified his insurance company that we are now representing him and that they will only communicate with us

• We got in contact with his doctors for any information we needed

• We sent him an opening file package with information about our services, his VIP benefits, and free membership to Maple Virtual Health

• We prepared the Demand and filed the lawsuit on his behalf in a timely manner

• We prepared him for every step of the process and represented him throughout

• We fought his insurance company and successfully won his LTD claim

• We were always a phone call or email away. Whenever he needed to talk to our team of disability lawyers, we will be there for him

• We gave him access to our Life reBUILDER program and provided him with the tools and resources he needed to get his life back on track

Bruno gives his experience a five star review

“Share Lawyers was a God send for me,” Bruno said in an email to us after his case was settled. “They took so much stress and anxiety off my plate and the process in which they won my battle for me was nothing short of supreme professionalism and compassion for my situation. I highly recommend your services to anyone who is fighting with insurance companies to get what they deserve for their suffering from which they’ve already paid into. Thank you Share Lawyers from the bottom of my heart!”

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A note from a long term disability lawyers

Taking a medical leave from work is not an easy decision to make. Concerns about providing for yourself and your family and keeping your job may cause you to want to push through your pain, but this won’t make your problems go away. Stopping work is often the smartest decision for your long term health and well-being, and your disability benefits are there to provide you with financial support until you can return to work.

If you have made the tough decision to stop working and apply for long term disability claim benefits, you may feel overwhelmed by the process and have questions that employers and insurance companies are not able or willing to answer. Disability law firms like Share Lawyers can see you through and answer your questions.

Our disability law firm knows what you have been going through

We understand that things have not been easy for you over the last little while. Your health has been suffering, you are unable to work, and now your insurance company, who was supposed to be there in your time of need, has decided they will not pay your disability benefits or respect your disability claim. These benefits exist to provide you with the financial support you need so that you can focus on your health and rebuilding your life. It is unfortunate that insurance companies do not live up to their promise. If your disability claim has been denied, we will fight to get you the benefits you are entitled to. Our disability lawyers have helped thousands of Canadians get their long term disability benefits over the past 35 years, and we can help you too.

Our experienced disability lawyers can fight back on your behalf

Share Lawyers believes that every client who is dealing with a disability claim deserves superior personal service. To achieve that goal, we have developed our team of experienced, compassionate, and caring disability lawyers, law clerks, and administrative staff to meet all of your needs. Our team of experienced long term disability, life insurance, employment, and critical illness insurance lawyers have made successful claims against many insurance companies, third-party administrators and employers.

If you are unable to work, your disability benefits should be there to provide you with the financial support you need. While your insurance company may be focused on finding ways to avoid paying your claim, our focus is on what is in your best interest. When Share Lawyers gets involved, you have an entire team of lawyers that are there to support you and to fight for what is yours.

Our disability claim lawyers fight for your disability insurance claim by relying on our many years of experience to apply the best strategic planning and approach in each case, using the latest technology available. Experience matters, and with Share Lawyers, you are in the best hands with 35 years of success on your side.

In this video, we explain the role of a long term disability lawyer and how we can support you when you have been denied your long term disability benefits.

Disability claim denied?

Contact Share Lawyers today and put our experience to work for you. Our 35+ years of experience can help you win your case against Canada Life, Desjardins, Manulife, RBC Insurance, Sun Life, and other insurance companies. We offer free consultations and there are no fees unless you win your case. Join us on Facebook and become a Top Fan for a chance to win each month.