RayBourhis.com the foremost attorneys on US disability insurance claim denials
Bourhis & Mann Separate Insurance Facts From Fiction
Popular movies have depicted accounts of hard-working families whose lives were changed after one of them sustained an injury or life-changing disability. In one of these plots, after their immediate fear and anguish, the family was at least self-assured in knowing that for many years they had paid into their loved one’s long-term disability insurance. When it came time to submit their claims, they gathered their policy paperwork and waited for payment. However, they were denied. They were informed that their policy did not cover their particular disability and as such the policyholder was not entitled to a claim payment.
While these dramas are often portrayed as big screen fictional works, the attorneys of Bourhis & Mann know them to be incredulously true. They have represented hundreds of men and women who have been denied rightful claims to Long Term Disability Insurance, Long Term Care-Major Medical Health Insurance, and Life Insurance-Disaster Insurance. Additionally, they have represented policyholders whose insurance company has breached their Duty to Defend.
Exposing Cheating Insurance Companies and Resolving Disputes and Denials
It is a practice all too common: the biggest disability insurance companies cheat their policyholders and claimants by denying valid claims. They do so because there’s no reason for them to stop and because there’s no one to stop them.
They'll do anything to avoid paying because if they wait long enough, they know the policyholders will die.Mary Senkowicz, formerly a senior executive with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners
Typically, an insurance company will make up an excuse to refuse payment, often misconstruing their own policies and applicable laws. When that occurs it can simply keep the money. If a claimant lives in a state where he or she can sue for losses and negotiate a claim—with or without the help of a standard attorney—the company will usually end up “settling” for a fraction of the original claim.
With greedy intent, these large insurance companies simply target and select a small proportion of disability claims and then deny or terminate them. Their claim representatives and attorneys will go to almost any length to allege that an insured is “malingering.” More often than not they will twist a doctor’s report, claim a medical condition is temporary, allege that a disability is only partial, and/or pay large fees to medical consultants who, in turn, misrepresent a policyholder’s medical condition.
In an industry gone afoul, the expert attorneys of Bourhis & Mann have successfully fought against these companies for their clients, and they may be able to help you.
The Nation’s Leading Insurance Policyholder Lawyers
During the past decade, their lawyers have won record verdicts and settlements against some of the largest insurance companies like Berkshire Life, UnumProvident and its various subsidiaries, New England Life, Colonial Life, Equitable, Philadelphia Life, Great Western, Metropolitan, and other companies. They have done so by contesting bad faith or fraudulent insurance policies of these and other companies who pursued profit over protection.
Several of these challenges have been reported on major television programs, such as 60 Minutes and Dateline. In addition, newspapers across the country have posted front page stories on the incredible verdicts, appeals, and settlements against some of the biggest disability insurance companies.
A Bourhis & Mann case in point: Stuart Gluck vs. UnumProvident
- “In this case the claimant Stuart Gluck, a medical doctor, had his Own Occupation benefits terminated by UnumProvident. At the time of his termination, UnumProvident was aware that Dr. Gluck had coronary artery disease, organic brain damage (confirmed by an MRI) and AIDS. The termination was based in part on the "opinion" of a UnumProvident nurse who had never met - much less examined - Dr. Gluck. The Gluck case, like most of our cases, was settled as well.”
All Bourhis & Mann cases are carefully screened. Insurance denials and disputes are frequently settled with outcomes resulting in a multiple of benefits owed, consequential and/or general damages, plus attorney’s fees.
FAQs About Insurance, Claims, and Consumer Protection
Currently, there are no national or state standards, regulations, court injunctions, or punitive damages that have managed to force the accountability of insurance companies. While contesting this, Bourhis & Mann concertedly work to inform and educate the public at-large about overall insurance industry matters.
On their Frequently Asked Questions page, the law firm instructs policyholders on insurance contract language, industry regulations, types of individual disability insurance policies, and more. Other advisement includes:
The recent addition of the Bourhis & Mann blog offers further insights such as:
About Bourhis & Mann
Bourhis & Mann was one of the first law firms to address the fraudulent policies and practices of insurance companies. Since then, many other attorneys have followed in their path but none have been as successful and accomplished as Ray Bourhis and Larry Mann.
Ray Bourhis is widely regarded by colleagues and national health care leaders as the authority on disability insurance claims and disputes. He has challenged the insurance industry and its abuses in the current system with courage and vigilance.
In his trailblazing book, Insult to Injury: Insurance, Fraud, and the Big Business of Bad Faith, Ray meticulously chronicles the stories of ordinary people who sought to go up against the well-funded and unscrupulous insurance industry machine. It’s a must read for anyone who has suffered from deceitful insurance denials or is concerned about insurance company greed.
Ray Bourhis continues his strong commitment to justice by successfully taking on the insurance industry and criminal fraud in this compelling case study. He makes it clear that we need to do much more to end the shameful abuses of the current system and guarantee honorable insurance coverage for every American.
Senator Edward M. Kennedy
Contact Bourhis & Mann for Free Advice and Assistance
If you think you have been unfairly denied a claim by your insurance company, contact Bourhis & Mann today. They offer a free consultation hotline, and an online form for submitting your review request and questions safely over the Internet. Call them today for a confidential review and move toward getting the insurance claim benefits to which you are entitled.
- Call the Hotline: 800.264.2082 toll-free
- Complete the Online Form for submitting your insurance case review or question.
- E-mail:
- Complete and send the Fax Form
- Fax: 415.421.0259
Address
- 1050 Battery Street
- San Francisco, CA 94111
