Fired while on disability? (employee, apply, work, company)

[GusRavine]

** I posted this on a different forum page, didn't know this one existed **

My uncle went on disability 6 months ago but his health insurance kept going because the human resources person was his friend.

He passed away and now theres a question about a life insurance benefit that my cousin, the beneficiary, wants to collect. The company that he worked for says that the policy is void because:

"He should have been terminated after 12 weeks of disability."

Is this true? He was on disability, how can they terminate you while you are sick? And also, the company kept paying for the policy, though not entirely aware.

[Rabrrita]

Yes, if it's a company owned and provided policy, the company rules apply. If the company policy states that an employee looses their life insurance if out on disability or any other reasons, the employee looses the policy. It doesn't matter if the company was mistakenly paying, the company policy is it ends on X date or under Y conditions. Most employee provided life and disability insurance is owned by the company. It's not the employee's policy, its the company. They can not take away what they promised you, but they don't have to give you more than what was promised.

[Suncc49]

If the company was paying for it they more than likely owned it. Did he have any other life insurance? Sorry for your loss.

[RarelyRelocating]

Originally Posted by GusRavine

My uncle went on disability 6 months ago but his health insurance kept going because the human resources person was his friend.

While the bolded part may have saved your family some healthcare costs but it may have cost you the life insurance. It also depends on the type of life insurance, i.e. term life, accidental death & dismemberment, etc..

Without knowing the specific details of what happened and what was under which contract it's difficult to say whether what happened was legit. My advice is to take all the paperwork you have about this to a lawyer and pay the $125-$250 it will cost to get a consultation on this matter.

If you do not have the money then contact one of the law offices anyway and they will be able to refer you to a pro-bono lawyer who will look at this without to charge you for it. The only issue with the pro-bono is that it may take time and it may not be in a location that is convenient for you (as opposed to the law office around the corner).

Good luck. Don't rely on legal advice given on an Internet forum, have an actual professional look at it.

[Caltovegas]

If you have a copy of the policy or certificate give it a read. You can also contact your state insurance department and ask them about the state laws with work place coverage.

[Yellow Saltbox]

The company that he worked for says that the policy is void because:

"He should have been terminated after 12 weeks of disability."

Ask to see a copy of the life insurance policy, and read it. If what the company says is true, you will find that information in the policy. If it's not in the policy, then question the company. Do all that before you start with lawyers, etc.