My experiences with Hartford have been nothing short of cruel. They started off by claiming that having Glioblastoma, which has an expected life span of about fifteen mont... read more >

Hartford

Sent my Direct Deposit to a Strangers Bank Acct

Reviewed by Brad on May 2nd 2024 Verified Policyholder | February 2024 date of disability

I went on short term disability and The Hartford put my direct deposit into someone else’s bank account. Somehow they messed up a number or two and they are refusing to ... read more >

Hartford

Former Hartford employee has had life insurance and accidental death policy's revoked for one late premium payment

Reviewed by Becky H. THOMAS on February 12th 2024 Verified Policyholder | February 2024 date of disability

Dislike how they are constantly interrupting the lives of their disabled EE's whom are entitled to benefit which they paid into out of there pay check every pay period onl... read more >

Reply

Sent on February 12th 2024 by Attorney Gregory Dell

Thank you for your review of Hartford and we appreciate you sharing. It’s sad they don’t take care of their own employees.

Hartford

Bad Faith

Reviewed by Dustin G on October 12th 2023 Verified Policyholder | November 2020 date of disability

They kept asking my doctor for the same information that they did not need to process my claim. He kept sending in the same information, and they kept asking for it. My do... read more >

Hartford

Denied by Hartford after 20 years of Payments

Reviewed by Mary on October 11th 2023 Verified Policyholder

Hello,I am a Multiple Sclerosis patient. I also have Lymph-edema, Asthma, Blood-clot problems, Bi-Polar 1 Depression, and Head & Neck Injuries. And now, due to MS, Spast... read more >

Hartford

This company is a scam!

Reviewed by Hana K. on July 13th 2023 Verified Policyholder | December 2022 date of disability

The Hartford does not pay claims. The Hartford only collects premiums. The Hartford doesn’t care if you are terminally ill. I’ve been employed at my employer since 201... read more >

Hartford

Hartford Stopped Payments

Reviewed by Fed up in PA on April 13th 2023 Verified Policyholder | January 2023 date of disability

Worst company ever. Their analysts will go against your treating provider every single time. Horrible experience, just horrible.

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Answered Questions by Our Lawyers

(72)

Showing 8 of 72 Answered Questions

Q: Does Hartford reduce their monthly LTD payments after 30 months?

Answered on December 17th 2024 by Attorney Rachel Alters

A: Usually there's a change in definition after 24 months. The fee reduction would come from any offsets due to s... Read More >

Q: Can The Hartford offset my LTD on my VA disability compensation or back pay?

Answered on November 14th 2024 by Attorney Jay Symonds

A: Tim, the Policy will define what other sources of income can offset or reduce your monthly benefit. Not all Po... Read More >

Q: Can Hartford lower my long term disability check if I take my money out of my Vanguard account?

Answered on November 14th 2024 by Attorney Gregory Dell

A: Thank you for your question. Hartford may be able to reduce your monthly benefits and seek an overpayment if y... Read More >

Q: Relocation

Answered on October 8th 2024 by Attorney Gregory Dell

A: Thanh:Moving within the USA should not impact your claim. You must make sure that you continue with your m... Read More >

Q: Is it possible to write me a strict authorization form for The Hartford?

Answered on September 5th 2024 by Attorney Gregory Dell

A: It would be best for you to tell Hartford to send you a release for any specific items that they want. You can... Read More >

Q: Denied by Hartford for Long-Term Disability Benefits

Answered on August 5th 2024 by Attorney Jay Symonds

A: Darlene: You certainly want to appeal their denial. I suggest you contact our office and speak with one of the... Read More >

Q: Disability company dropped my monthly benefits

Answered on February 28th 2024 by Attorney Rachel Alters

A: Since you went back to work full time you would not qualify for further benefits. You could file a new claim i... Read More >

Q: The Hartford stopped monthly benefits for repayment due to an overpayment. Once monthly benefits end do I still have to repay remaining overpayment balance?

Answered on February 28th 2024 by Attorney Rachel Alters

A: Yes, you will still be responsible for the overpayment even if your Hartford benefits end. Read More >

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Helpful Videos

(908)

Showing 12 of 908 Videos

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Disability Benefit Tips

(331)

Showing 8 of 331 Benefit Tips

Does Hartford Pay Disability Insurance Claims?

At Dell & Schaefer, we get questions about Hartford long term disability policies on nearly a daily basis. As one of the biggest names in insurance, Hartford is a well-oiled machine when it comes to processing (and, sometimes, denying) disability claims. Learn more about what it's like to appeal Hartford's denial of your claim for long term disabili... Read More >

How Does Hartford Long Term Disability Work?

The most common questions for a disability attorney involve understanding how disability coverage actually works. When it comes to The Hartford long-term disability insurance policies in particular, there are a lot of searches for that type of information. It’s a broad question, but one that we’re well-equipped to answer at disability insurance law firm Dell... Read More >

What Happens If My Hartford Short Term Disability Claim is Denied?

Understand your rights once your Hartford short term disability income claim has been denied. In this featured article and video gain insights into:Hartford DeadlinesAdministrative Appeal - What Is It?Administrative Appeal ProcessBenefits of Hiring A Disability Insurance AttorneyGREGORY DELL: Hi. I'm attorney Greg Dell, here with Stephen. A... Read More >

How Long Does a Hartford Short Term or Long Term Disability Claim Last?

Hartford disability income policy holders expect Hartford to pay their Short Term & Long-Term disability insurance benefits, if continuously disabled, until the policy holder’s social security retirement age. That isn’t always the case. In this video and article learn about:What is the length of your elimination period and the length of your be... Read More >

If I Convert my Former Employee Disability Policy to a Private Policy Does ERISA Govern?

Many employer welfare benefit plans offer employees who quit their employment the option of converting their disability insurance plan to a private plan. When a claim for disability benefits is filed, there may be a dispute over whether the conversion plan is governed by ERISA. If so, then ERISA preempts any state law claims a plaintiff may have. If not, the conversion policy is a private&n... Read More >

Is the Hartford Disability Purchase of Aetna Bad for Aetna LTD Policy Holders?

In October 2017 Hartford Insurance company agreed to purchase the disability and life insurance division of Aetna insurance company for 1.45 billion dollars.In this video nationwide long term disability insurance attorneys Gregory Dell and Stephen Jessup discuss what impact they believe this sale will have on Aetna long term disability policy holders.Con... Read More >

Hartford Disability Claim Problems

Hartford is requesting long term disability claimants to provide additional documentation from their attending physicians and additional claimant statements more often than usual. Additional documentation is typically requested as a claimant nears 24 months of payments and there is a change in the definition from the own occupation to the any occupation.In t... Read More >

How Can I Protect Myself At A Hartford IME Exam?

In this video, disability insurance attorneys Rachel Alters and Cesar Gavidia discuss what you can expect at an IME exam requested by The Hartford disability insurance company. The information they discuss is applicable to an IME exam requested by most disability insurance companies.You need to take extreme precautions if your have been requested to attend o... Read More >

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Dell Disability Cases

(375)

Showing 8 of 375 Dell Disability Cases

Nurse With Knee and Back Disorder Wins Hartford Disability Appeal

We represent a General Duty Nurse who was denied long term disability benefits as Hartford improperly determined that she was able to work her medium duty job on a full time basis. The medical and occupational documentation submitted with her appeal that we filed on her behalf, as well as the documentation and evidence previously submitted by her physicians, cle... Read More >

Executive Director with Meniere's Denied Long Term Disability Insurance Benefits By Hartford

Our client, came to us when he was unjustly denied his claim for LTD benefits by Aetna, now Hartford, asserting that his medical records did not demonstrate “a consistent inability to perform [his] sedentary occupation”. Aetna abused its discretion in reaching this determination as its decision was not only wrong but arbitrary and capricious and was not based on a fu... Read More >

A Hartford Disability Benefit Lawsuit Victory for Truist Banker with Lupus

Our client found us after she was denied continued disability insurance benefits by the Hartford. Unfortunately, by the time she found us, she had already filed an appeal, which was unfortunately denied. This left her with a final avenue of filing an ERISA lawsuit in Federal Court, a task we never shy away from.Her story was an interesting one. In fact, h... Read More >

Hartford Denies Disability Benefits To Home Depot Employee 3 Weeks Before Change of Disability Definition

Our client was a former in-store merchandising associate responsible for the movement of merchandise, display set up, signage installation, inventory and merchandising strategies who went out on disability due to mental health conditions as well as physical medical conditions related to chronic back pain, SI joint pain and hip pain that potentially required repl... Read More >

Hartford Denies Long Term Disability Benefits After Paying for 22 Years

It is crazy that Hartford denied long term disability benefits to our client after paying for 22 years. Client initially went out on disability on April 15, 1999, due to a diagnosis of HIV/Aids, chronic hepatitis B, lipodystrophy, wasting syndrome, neuropathy/pain and fatigue. His claim was with Aetna, but after Hartford purchased Aetna, Hartford began an u... Read More >

Hartford Overturns Denial of Disability Benefits on Appeal

Our client, a former clerk at a coal mine with severe lumbar back problems first, contacted our office and spoke with Attorney Stephen Jessup in 2015 after Hartford denied his claim for long term disability benefits following short term disability. Similar to the vast majority of people with employer provided disability insurance with Hartford, our client’s short term disability policy was ultimately payable... Read More >

Hartford Approves Disability Claim After Appeal Deadline

Prior to filing for disability our client worked as a registered nurse in a hospital setting, suffering from multiple chronic medical conditions that resulted in ever worsening pain throughout her back, neck and extremities. When her conditions began to limit her ability to safely and effectively perform her occupational duties she, on her own, filed a claim for disability benefits under her employer’s group... Read More >

Hartford overturned its previous denial of LTD benefits for Illinois Account Representative

Our client, Mr. K, formerly worked as an Account Representative for an international brokerage firm. In May 2017 a number of medical issues, including the debilitating effects of chronic congestive heart failure, arteriosclerotic heart disease of native coronary artery, chest pain forced Mr. K to stop working and submit his claim for disability benefits first under his employer’s short-term disability (STD) ... Read More >

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Disability Lawsuit Stories

(765)

Showing 8 of 765 Lawsuit Stories

Federal Court Overturns Aetna Denial Of Disability Benefits

In the recent case of Ferrin v. Aetna Life Ins. Co. a federal judge from the Northern District of Illinois determined that Aetna improperly terminated Ferrin’s claim for long term disability benefits and ordered Aetna to reinstate Ferrin’s claim and pay all past due benefits with interest. Prior to filing for long term disability Ferrin was an employee of Southwest Airlines. In 2008, while at work, she suf... Read More >

Hartford Admits to Improper Offset, Agrees to Reimburse 10 Years of Wrongfully Withheld Money

In August of 2019, the next of kin for a man currently incarcerated in Florida State Prison reached out to our firm as his relative had been denied receipt of continued long term disability benefits. As it turns out, the imprisoned individual had been receiving Long Term Disability (LTD) Insurance Benefits since October 7, 1994 from Aetna and later Hartford (as Hartford purchased Aetna’s Group Life and Disab... Read More >

Court Finds Video Surveillance Renders Claimant’s Self-Reporting Unreliable and Upholds Hartford’s Termination of LTD Benefits

In Cummings v. Hartford Life & Accident Ins. Co. (Hartford), Plaintiff was employed by the Free-Port McMoran Corporation (Plan) when he became disabled due to diagnoses of degenerative disc disease which caused him chronic debilitating pain and myofascial pain syndrome.Plaintiff was covered under his employer’s Group Long Term Disability Plan through Hartf... Read More >

Can Medical Records Created After the Eligibility Period Support a Claim for Disability Benefits?

In James s. Louis v. The Hartford Life and Accident Insurance Company (Hartford), Plaintiff was a Senior Principal Product Strategist with Oracle America Inc. (Oracle) when he was fired from his job effective October 13, 2017. Between May 2017 and the date of termination, Plaintiff worked only intermittently.Oracle provided its employees with a long term disability (LTD) benef... Read More >

Appeals Court Upholds Hartford's Termination of Disability Benefits

In Scott Griffin v. Hartford Life & Accident Insurance Company, Plaintiff was a medical transcriptionist who was initially awarded long term disability benefits in 2010 due to arm and wrist pain and a herniated cervical disc. He ultimately underwent surgery for the bad disc.Plaintiff’s initial benefits were awarded based on his inability to perform the regular duties of his own occupation. After 24 m... Read More >

Hartford Disability Company Field Interview Request and Video Surveillance

Hartford Disability Company, and other disability insurers, use video surveillance and field interviews as a technique to deny claims. A recent federal court case found that Hartford correctly terminated long term disability benefits for a claimant who was caught on video surveillance engaging in activities which she had claimed she could not do.In this case, after Hartford conducted its surveillance, whic... Read More >

Hartford Long Term Disability Benefit Denial Reversed by Minnesota Federal Judge

A long term disability insurance claimant had his benefits denied when a doctor made a mistake in completing an Attending Physician Statement. Following submission of an ERISA appeal Hartford ignored the additional information submitted and once again denied the claim following an Appeal. Following the submission of a Federal lawsuit, the Minnesota Federal Judge... Read More >

Federal District Court Overturns Hartford's Denial of Long Term Disability Benefits

In the recent decision of Tobin v Hartford Life & Acc. Ins. Co. a Michigan Federal District Court overturned Hartford’s denial of long term disability benefits to a former Disney employee suffering from Fibromyalgia. The Court noted in its opinion that Hartford’s requirement of objective evidence of the diagnosis of Fibromyalgia was arbitrary under applicable case law in Michigan and that in denying he... Read More >

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Reviews from Our Clients

S.S.

I am a physician in my 30s who was practicing in my hospital based medical specialty until my Multiple Sclerosis diagnosis began to severely limit my physical ability to work.

My husband and I were obviously in distress at these very unwanted life changes and frankly overwhelmed with the possibility of a long and traumatizing legal battle ahead of us. We knew we were legally entitled to benefits through the separate private individual and employer based ERISA disability insurance policies we had, but even cursory research and discussion with colleagues made it clear that insurance companies will strategize with their own legal teams to find ways to not pay out benefits. We found many before us who had fallen unwittingly into legal pitfalls that prevented them from ultimately obtaining benefits. We realized we needed to seek legal counseling.

We found Dell Disability Lawyers through their YouTube channel where their partners have videos discussing the legal intricacies and latest developments in private disability law. I was impressed by their dedication to the field and reached out through their website to request a free consultation.

We were delighted to hear that Mr. Steven Dell himself would be willing to take our case and felt assured that we would be represented by the best of the best.

We have not been disappointed in our expectation and have, in fact, been consistently very impressed. Steven Dell is clearly both knowledgeable and wise about dealing with these issues but more importantly, has shown kindness and impeccable honesty at each step of the way.

Merlin has demonstrated a very high capacity for organizing and handling the endless myriad of documents and communications between us and the insurance companies. She has also been very compassionate, accessible and forthcoming in dealing with our many anxiety fueled emails and telephone calls to her and we are very grateful for her involvement.

For over 7 months, we have been working closely with Steven Dell and Merlin Bryan from Dell Disability Lawyers as they have guided us through the process of review and initial application for benefits from our two insurance policies (Hartford and Ameritas).

We are happy to announce we just received approval of claim from the Hartford insurance company.

At this time we are still working with this firm as we await the final decisions from Ameritas policy that we are hopeful will have a similar outcome.

As anyone with a chronic and progressive illness can tell you, time becomes a very precious commodity. Through their representation, Dell Disability Lawyers has allowed us to focus the majority of our time enjoying the time and function I have left while resting assured that our disability case laid in competent and caring hands.

The truth is that no amount of money can make up for what we have lost, but it is a huge comfort to have a team like Dell Disability Lawyers at our sides to help us ensure we will be able to continue to care for ourselves and our families.

We highly recommend Dell Disability Lawyers, Mr. Steven Dell and Ms. Merlin Bryan to handle your disability insurance claim.

Thank you Steven, thank you Merlin!

We will certainly plan on leaving another review for completeness once we have our final decision from Ameritas.

Paula B.

I have been working with Dell Disability Lawyers for the past 5 years concerning my disability as it pertained to my employer. I have been more than pleased with them the entire time. They have always kept me informed of any paperwork needing completed or any changes coming ahead. Nothing has been a surprise. I would recommend them to you to help with your disability case if you’re trying to dip into the policy you’ve been paying for.

Michael M.

I am a physician who has been disabled for over 10 years. During this time I have been represented by Cesar Gavidia and his assistant, Danielle Lauria. Their representation on my behalf has allowed me to concentrate on dealing with my disability/disease process and all associated complications and not having to deal with all the things that are necessary in a disability insurance claim. Based on my personal experience from many years of practicing medicine I would consider their work product, insight and effort in the disability insurance claim procedures to be superior. I would recommnend them, which I have done, with my highest level of confidence. In short, you will be well served with this practice.

Dan P.

I had to retire from my career due to a bad back that restricted me from performing my duties. I had LTD insurance and after a few years of receiving monthly benefits from this insurance company, they notified me that my benefits were terminated stating that I don’t qualify due to my duties not fitting into some “national job description” and a nurse had deemed me eligible to go back to work. It’s a crushing feeling to have this told to you over the phone with hardly any information given. Luckily, I came across Dell Disability Lawyers and spoke with Attorney Palamara who calmed me down and stated they would take my case. Within a couple of months my benefits were restored, and I had piece of mind. I cannot thank Attorney Palamara and the staff at Dell Disability Lawyers enough for their professionalism, no nonsense approach, personal and timely communication and quick ability to litigate my case.

Jen S.

I wanted to thank Mr. Symonds and his legal assistant Sonia for their professionalism, guidance and dedication towards my LTD insurance claim. Going through the denial process on my own was going to get me sicker and I knew it was time for help right away. I reached out to Dell Disability Lawyers for assistance and not too long after my call, I was connected with Sonia. Soon after that, I was talking about my case with Mr. Symonds. After a long and tedious process with the LTD insurer, we won the case. The wait can absolutely be lengthy, but in the end, it was all very much worth the fight. Thank you both so much for all that you have done for me! I also want to thank those who assisted in keeping me updated, as needed. Highly recommended for anyone who is going through the brutal process of an LTD denial.

Carl G.

I would like to thank Dell Disability Lawyers for taking care of my case and help me get the insurance coverage that I was rightfully in need of. Specially, I would like to thank Attorney Alexander Palamara and right-hand legal assistant, Sonia Nogueira, who made this process less stressful. They answered all my questions and kept me informed every step of the way.

Don’t get me wrong. They never promised or told me that I was going to win my case, as no one can guarantee that for you. What they did do, was letting me know that they were working hard for me and to keep positive. Something that I recommend everyone to do is to subscribe to their YouTube channel. That will give you an idea on how they operate and why they (for most of their cases) win their cases.

Since I was awarded disability, I am still having surgeries and thanks to them, I’ve been able to cover all those expenses.

Warm regards to everyone at Dell Disability Lawyers!

Clarisa B.

I’m so very Grateful and Thankful for the team at Dell Disability Lawyers. They worked tirelessly to get the best outcome for me. I’m so glad that I found them!!

Carole S.

Exceptional, efficient and professional service from Jay Symonds and Sonia Nogueira. They were both so helpful and knowledgeable and navigated me through a very stressful and difficult situation with New York Life.

K. S.

Awesome team. Jay and his team, Sonia and Francesca, truly care. This team is very professional and quick to respond. Jay always provided answers in detail to my questions. I strongly recommend Jay Symonds.

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