Beware of any Group Disability Policy
Attorney
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Many professional athletes find themselves doing battle with their sports group disability plan insurance carrier.
In 2006, an appeals court awarded the estate of former Pittsburgh Steelers center Mike Webster more than $1.5 million in disability pay from the plan. It was the first successful challenge of the plan's rules and it has given hope to many of the players who feel left out.
While this is a victory for the players, I can tell you that any athlete seeking disability pay from these plans faces an uphill battle.
Most group long term disability polices (those offered by employers) stink. If you can afford to, and you want real disability insurance, you should be talking to a broker about a private/individual policy.
Most group policies aren't worth the paper they are written on because:
1. The protect you if you can't work in your own occupation for only 2 years.
2. If any part of your disability is caused by a mental or nervous disorder, the limit is generally 2 years. (And the disability insurance companies will do their best to lump your disability into the mental and nervous box.
3. Group policies are governed by ERISA. This means, generally, that the insurance company's decision on your claim is entitled to the benefit of the doubt and can only be reversed by a court for an abuse of discretion. This means you have to show that they are really, really wrong.