Long-Term Disability Claims for Long-Haul Truckers in British Columbia - Taylor & Blair LLP Insurance Denial Lawyers

Long-haul truckers play a crucial role in keeping our economy moving by transporting goods across British Columbia, Canada, and internationally. The supply chain for all goods requires truckers to make it work, much more so in countries like Canada with significant amounts of undeveloped wilderness.

However, despite the essential nature of their work, long-haul truckers are not immune to the risk of injury or illness that could render them unable to work. Many of these truckers have long-term disability policies intended to help them financially when disaster strikes. Unfortunately for many, their legitimate long-term disability claims are denied.

Common Truck Driver Injuries & Conditions

Long-haul and other truckers are often engaged in hard and strenuous work, despite the popular view that the most significant aspect of the job is sitting and driving for long periods of time (which can be taxing on its own). Whether related to preparing their truck for travel, securing or loading/off-loading cargo, or dealing with any other of the multitude of tasks that are required of them, trucking can bring with it many opportunities for injury that can result in a disability. Some of the more common injuries that impact truckers are:

Along with injury, truck drivers are also susceptible to other conditions which can render them disabled from working. Truck drivers have high indices of cigarette smoking, obesity and other indicators that can lead to disabling conditions like cancer, respiratory illnesses, diabetes, and strokes, amongst others.

Why Truck Driver Long-Term Disability Claims Get Denied

Long-haul truckers and other truck drivers are generally individuals who have experience working physically demanding jobs and usually do not have significant academic schooling. They also can earn a good salary without significant educational requirements. For most long-term disability policies there are two periods of disability covered. The first is disability from your own occupation. After a time, often 2 years, the definition of disability under a policy usually changes to disability from any job for which you are reasonably suited in light of your education and training that earns an amount approximate to your salary or another specified metric. One reason truckers often have their long-term disability claims denied is that insurance companies have difficulties finding comparable occupations for truckers once they’ve been unable to return to physical work and that means that policyholders might qualify under their policy for long-term disability for a long time. Insurance companies are incentivized to get these types of claims off their books.

There are other reasons why insurance companies deny long-term disability claims for truckers, including lack of medical evidence, policy exclusions, and failure to comply with recommended medical treatment or procedure under the terms of the policy.

Truck Driver Long-Term Disability Denial Lawyer

If you or someone you know has been denied their legitimate truck driver long-term disability claim, the experienced insurance denial lawyers at Taylor & Blair LLP can help make sure the insurance company pays you what you’re owed.

To help expedite a review of your claim, please have a copy of your long-term disability denial letter, a copy of your long-term disability policy and, ideally, a copy of your file with the insurance company. Your file materials with the insurance company belong to you and your insurer will provide you with them if you request a copy. If you haven’t already requested a copy of your file materials after your long-term disability was denied, do so today, as your lawyer will need your insurance file to properly pursue your claim for long-term disability benefits.

There are strict timelines in which you have e to bring a lawsuit to enforce your rights to long-term disability benefits. Contact the lawyers at Taylor & Blair LLP today for a free consultation.