California is again facing a series of wildfires, with numerous large and small blazes burning throughout the state. Some Californians are being forced to evacuate their homes when fires get too close. Being forced to flee from your home is difficult, but returning to a seriously damaged or destroyed home can be emotionally

Suffering from a long-term disability (LTD) means you already have enough to deal with. You do not want to add fighting with an insurance company to the list. All too often, insurance companies try to avoid paying for coverage. That could leave you vulnerable both physically and financially. There are actions you

The basic concept of insurance is that it functions as a pooling of risk for policyholders and the insurer. Policyholders pay into a common fund to be drawn upon at a later date if needed. The money in the common fund belongs to policyholders and the insurer earns a fee for managing

When you enter into a contractual relationship with an insurance company, you expect that they will honor the terms contained in their policy. At the time you decide to accept their offer for coverage, they made promises to you that you would be protected in the event that something should happen. Unfortunately,

Many of us depend upon our jobs to provide us with the means to make a living. We create budgets and financial plans based on the amount of money that we make each month. When we suffer an injury or illness that makes working impossible, we need to know what we can

Many clients come to us and have serious questions when they suffer from a disability that makes them unable to work. They have disability insurance but do not know what that means or what that entitles them to receive from their insurers. In this post, we want to answer some of the

Recently, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals released a decision that may have a significant impact on long-term disability insurance matters in California. The ruling could potentially limit some of the power that insurance companies have to deny claims for benefits. The case concerned a woman who worked for Boeing. As a

New regulations will now govern the ERISA disability claims and their appeals proceedings. These regulations will take effect on all disability claims that will be filed in 2018 – starting from the very first day of January. The new rule will affect all disability plans under ERISA. These include pension plans and all long-term

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) has been a headache for many people who have been hurt on the job since it was passed by the U.S. Congress in 1974. Before the law was passed, many employees would try to file long-term disability claims from companies who promised them rock-solid insurance

Some insurance companies offer lifetime disability benefits.  They usually come at an additional fee (or premium) and are attached to the policy as an “endorsement” or “rider” to the policy.  But not all lifetime coverage is created equal.  Some policies – usually those that were issued in the 1980’s or 1990’s – merely continue your benefits