Disability Lawyer Waterloo

In Waterloo, you may receive disability benefits through your employer — whether you work for a major institution like a university or tech company, or a smaller business. Alternatively, you may have secured a disability policy through a group plan on your own.

In either case, disability insurance is meant to protect you if you suddenly become too ill or injured to work. In this situation, disability insurance can provide you with benefits so you can pay for your most important expenses while you recover.

You may feel peace of mind, knowing you have a policy in place, but in reality many workers with a legitimate claim find their claims are denied or delayed. Some are pressured to return to work before their doctor feels it is safe.

If your claim is denied or you encounter other serious problems when trying to access your rightful benefits, contact a disability lawyer in Waterloo. You can consult with a lawyer by reaching out to Derek Wilson Injury and Disability Law for a free consultation.

Our Law Firm & How We Help With Your Disability Claim

To understand how we can help, you need to understand disability insurance in Ontario. Most employees have both short-term disability coverage and long-term disability coverage.

As the name implies, short-term disability coverage is for injuries and illnesses that are expected to be of short duration. Depending on your policy, short-term disability can cover you for a few months, though some generous policies cover you for up to a year. Up to 60% to 100% of your income may be covered, and you can expect to get benefits within a few weeks, and sometimes within 10 business days.

Once you have exhausted short-term disability, you may be able to transition to long-term disability coverage. Depending on your policy, you can expect to get 60%-80% of your income in benefits, though this varies. You may be able to get benefits for years, depending on the terms of your policy.

The process of applying for disability or transitioning from short-term to long-term disability should be simple; it is often anything but. Many people encounter serious challenges when trying to access the benefits they may be counting on, and that’s where Derek Wilson Injury and Disability Law may be able to help.

At Derek Wilson Injury and Disability Law, we work with employees whose long-term or short-term disability claims have been denied. We know that this is a difficult time. You’re already coping with pain, stress, and uncertainty, and fighting with an insurance company shouldn’t be added to your plate.

Often, workers don’t have experience dealing with insurance claims, and insurers can use this to their advantage. At Derek Wilson Injury and Disability Law, our goal is to help you get your rightful benefits with a smart strategy to outwit the insurance companies.

We focus solely on personal injury and disability law, which means we know the system, and we know how to make it work for you. Through the whole process, you’ll be working directly with Derek Wilson. Your case will not be passed off to a junior associate or case manager. We believe you should be getting the benefit of a lawyer with decades of experience.

We also believe in providing clear communication and compassionate support when you need it most. For that reason, if you’ve been denied benefits in Waterloo or your claim is delayed or underpaid, you can count on straight talk from us. We reply to your calls and emails quickly and we answer your questions. Our team develops a strategy designed to help you fight for what’s fair.

Types Of Disability Cases We Handle in Waterloo

At our firm, we handle a wide range of disability cases for clients in the Waterloo area, including:

• Long-term disability (LTD) claims.
• Short-term disability (STD) claims.
• Denials based on “pre-existing condition” exclusions.
• Disability denials for mental health disability claims.
• Disability denials for claims involving chronic pain or invisible illnesses.
• Denied disability benefits for cancer, fibromyalgia, neurological disorders, and other serious conditions.
• Disability insurance disputes involving return-to-work demands or surveillance.

Whether your claim is through your employer’s group benefits plan or a privately purchased policy, if you are denied your benefits, if your benefits are unfairly cut off, or if you are being pressured to return to work before you are healed, contact us for a free consultation with a disability lawyer in Waterloo.

Why Choose Derek Wilson as Your Disability Lawyer in Waterloo?

When you’re choosing someone to handle your disability claim, experience and personal service matter. Derek Wilson has been practicing law since 1993 and has spent decades working on both sides of insurance disputes. After law school, he represented insurance companies in Toronto and had a front-row seat to the strategies used to deny claims. That means he knows how insurers think and how to respond when they deny legitimate claims.

We don’t take on every case, because we believe in dedicating plenty of time and resources to your claim. Derek personally manages each file and limits the number of active cases so every client gets the attention they need. There are no upfront legal fees, and you won’t pay anything unless we successfully recover benefits on your behalf.

Our law firm is here to stand by you when it matters most. We have helped employees who have been where you are now—hard-working Waterloo residents who were worried about paying the bills because the insurance claim they were counting on was denied. Our law firm has helped clients get their rightful compensation, so they were able to take care of their bills and medical care.

What To Expect from The Disability Claim Legal Process

When you’re dealing with a serious health issue, the last thing you need is to be dealing with a complex insurance process. To get disability insurance, you will need to apply. To start the process, you will generally need to establish that you are too injured or ill to work. You will generally work with your doctor to determine whether your doctor agrees that you need time off work.

You will want to review the insurance policy documents provided by your employer or group plan. These will outline your eligibility requirements and how to apply. Make sure that you follow the application process to the letter. This may involve filling out and submitting documentation, having your employer submit an Employers Report, and having your doctor submit an Attending Doctor’s Report.

Once you have submitted everything, you will wait for the insurer’s decision. Even if you receive approval and get your benefits, once the time limit for your short-term benefits is almost up you will need to transition to long-term benefits. To do this, you will need to follow the process outlined in your long-term disability policy. You will likely need to send the insurer updated medical information from your doctor, too, to establish that you continue to be too ill or injured to return to work.

At any point during this process, challenges can arise. For example, you may get a letter after applying, stating that your application for benefits is denied. Even if you secure short-term benefits, you may be denied when you apply for long-term benefits. You may receive less than you think you should receive. You may also get a letter indicating that you must return to work or that your benefits are about to be cut off.

Should you run into any of these problems, it’s worthwhile consulting with a disability lawyer in Waterloo. When you consult with Derek Wilson Injury and Disability Law, here’s what you can expect:

• A free consultation to review your situation and determine whether you have a claim.
• If you’ve already applied and been denied, we’ll examine your denial letter and supporting documents to determine the next steps.
• We help you gather any additional records or specialist opinions needed to strengthen your case.
• If necessary, we’ll file a claim and pursue negotiation or litigation.

Our goal is to help you get your benefits as soon as possible. In many cases, we pursue negotiation with the insurance company for you. If we can reach a settlement, this gives you your rightful benefits without the need for a court case. However, we always prepare your case for litigation and are prepared to go to court if the insurance company refuses to play fair.

We also help you avoid some of the common mistakes that could hurt your claim. For example, insurers may recommend the appeals process, but in many cases an appeal will just take time and will result in the same decision. After all, it is the same insurer reviewing your appeal.

Eligibility For Disability Benefits

If you’re unable to work due to illness or injury, you may be eligible for short-term or long-term disability benefits. In general, to qualify for disability benefits, you must show that your condition prevents you from performing the essential duties of your job. This could be due to a physical injury, mental health issue, chronic illness, or a combination of factors.

Your eligibility may depend on the terms of your insurance policy, how your disability is defined, and the medical documentation you provide. It is important to review the policy to determine what the timelines are and what conditions are excluded. This can help you determine whether you qualify.

At Derek Wilson Injury and Disability Law, we help individuals in Waterloo who are denied their rightful benefits or who have their benefits cut off. If you are being told you don’t qualify for benefits but your policy indicates you are, reach out for a free consultation.

Dealing With an Insurance Company

Filing a disability claim is only half the battle. Once your application is submitted, you may find yourself waiting weeks or even months for a decision. Insurance companies have a financial motive to delay claims: the more they collect in premiums and the less they pay out, the more they make in profits.

Insurers use many strategies to try to deny claims or to cut off benefits you’re already receiving. They may request extra paperwork, question your diagnosis, or suggest you return to work sooner than your doctor recommends. Some insurance companies even use investigators who will conduct surveillance on you so insurers can question your disability.

Our law firm is very familiar with these tactics. Before founding this firm, Derek Wilson worked on the other side of the table, representing insurance companies. He founded this law firm to help people like you get their rightful benefits.

If you’re in Waterloo and struggling to deal with an insurer that’s giving you the runaround, we can step in. We’ll communicate directly with the insurance company, help you gather strong medical evidence, and work to protect your right to fair benefits.

Denied Disability? Here’s How We Help

A denied disability claim can feel like the end of the road, but it isn’t. It is possible to challenge the decision.

At Derek Wilson Injury and Disability Law, we review every denial to understand what went wrong. Sometimes it’s a paperwork issue. Other times, the insurer may have misinterpreted your condition. Whatever the reason, we’ll help you build a strong case to move your claim forward.

At Derek Wilson We Get Results, Period. Contact Us to Have Us by Your Side During Your Disability Claim

Our law firm gets results. We have helped many hard-working Ontarians get their benefits or get their benefits reinstated after being cut off. We also help employees fight back if they are being pressured to return to work while still injured.

Are you having difficulty getting the short-term or long-term disability benefits you have been paying for? To review whether you have options and to consult about what we can do to help you, contact Derek Wilson Injury and Disability Law for a free consultation with a disability lawyer in Waterloo.