Providing Skilled Assistance for Death Benefit Denials
People buy life insurance to help ensure their families remain financially secure after their death. But when insurance companies deny life insurance payouts, families can face serious economic hardship in addition to the severe emotional distress of losing their loved ones.
If you have lost your spouse or other family member and you believe the life insurance company has unfairly denied your claim for death benefits, you may be able to hold the insurer legally accountable if they acted in bad faith. An experienced Las Vegas life insurance lawyer from Leverty & Associates can assess the situation and advise you about your rights and options.
Speak to One of Our Denied Life Insurance Lawyers in Nevada
Our firm has proudly served Nevada clients for more than 40 years. Our lawyers, who have over 100 years of combined legal experience, have in-depth knowledge into state and federal insurance laws, regulations, and practices.
When you need help with what may be a bad faith life insurance case, reach out to us by calling (702) 507-0201 to schedule a free consultation. We aggressively stand up for life insurance beneficiaries who are being treated unfairly by insurers whose focus is on increasing profits.
Why Choose Us to Help You?
When you choose our law firm to help you, you can rest assured we have the level of experience needed to take on big insurance companies and win. Just read our testimonials and consider our track record of success: We have recovered more than $150 million from insurers on behalf of our clients. Additionally …
- We bring a team approach to cases—meaning you do not have just one skilled Las Vegas life insurance lawyer looking out for your interests, you have the support of our entire attorney team.
- We offer contingency fees in insurance bad faith lawsuits, so you do not have to pay us until we get you a settlement or judgement.
- Our firm provides free consultations so that we can learn about your insurance problem, and you can learn whether you may have a strong legal claim against your insurer.
- Our attorneys are highly respected in the Nevada legal community in the area of insurance law.
- Firm founder Gene Leverty was Chief Deputy Insurance Commissioner of the State of Nevada, which gained him special insight into complex insurance coverage issues.
We know that this is probably a frightening time for you if you have been denied a death benefit. This can be especially so if your deceased loved one was a family provider. Contact us to find out how we can help you. If the life insurer acted in bad faith in denying your claim, we will get to the bottom of it and work hard to get you the benefit to which you are entitled. You could potentially recover what your insurer owes you under the life insurance policy terms, as well as other damages caused by your insurer’s unjust denial of your claim.
How Our Law Firm Can Help
We know that you have more than enough to cope with during this difficult time. Our skilled Las Vegas insurance lawyers can help you by taking away the stress and frustration of dealing with the insurer. Insurance companies are in the business of making money. When they can pay out as little as possible, they improve their bottom lines. Trying to get a life insurance company to do right by you when you don’t speak the language of insurers or understand how they operate can be an uphill, and ultimately unsuccessful, battle. Our attorneys do understand how insurance companies operate and the unfair tactics they may use to deny claims. We will:
- Investigate the reason your claim was denied and advise you about your legal options
- Develop an appeal strategy, identify, and gather additional information and documents needed to support it and file an appeal
- Counsel you about taking legal action if your appeal is unfairly denied
- Represent your rights and interests in the court of law in a bad faith lawsuit.
When you are rightfully entitled to a life insurance payout, we will not back down in standing up for you. Contact our law firm today to schedule a free consultation with an experienced denied life insurance lawyer. Call us at (702) 507-0201.
Reasons for Denied Life Insurance Claims
Here are some of the reasons that life insurers may give for denying life insurance benefits. They may claim that:
- A valid death certificate or other required documentation was not provided.
- The insurance had lapsed/was canceled because of missed payments.
- The policyholder did not disclose a pre-existing medical condition.
- The policyholder misrepresented their lifestyle habits, such as claiming not to smoke when they were a smoker.
- The policyholder died during the contestability period, which is typically two years from the date the policy was first issued.
- The policyholder abused drugs or alcohol and that led to their death.
- The policyholder died in another country.
- The policyholder died from an excluded cause, which depends on the policy. Excluded causes could include suicide, criminal activity or high-risk activities like skydiving or mountain climbing, as examples.
These are just some of the reasons insurers may give for claim denials. And not every life insurance claim denial is a case of bad faith. Sometimes denials are valid based on the individual policy and policyholder. But because life insurance is so complex and there are ample opportunities for unscrupulous insurers to deny claims, it is to your benefit to get legal guidance if you believe your death payout may have been unfairly denied.
Bad Faith Claim Denial Can Be Careless or Intentional
A bad faith denial is when the life insurer denies your claim for death benefits without a legitimate reason. An insurer may act in bad faith due to carelessness, or it may even be intentional. They might lose documentation you have provided and then claim you never provided it. They might not investigate the claim appropriately or they might intentionally misinterpret the language of the policy in their favor. They might not communicate with you in a timely way to delay paying on the policy. There are a variety of tactics dishonest insurers may use.
After all, every time a life insurer can get away with not paying a death benefit, they make more money. But there’s no doubt life insurance and insurance law is complicated. It is hard for most people who simply want to collect on a policy to know whether a denial was unfair, which is where a life insurance attorney can help you.
Turn to a Denied Life Insurance Attorney in Las Vegas for Help
A denial of life insurance benefits is hard to accept when you and your children need the financial security the money will provide. And you should not accept the decision if you believe your death benefit claim is valid. If you suspect you are dealing with an unscrupulous insurer, speak with an attorney who can examine the situation and hold your insurer accountable for paying the money you are owed. Our attorneys have over 100 years of combined experience assisting Nevada clients who are having insurance issues.
Nevada Life Insurance Denial Lawyer Answers FAQs
Life insurance claim denials are not unusual. Consequently, our law firm receives many questions about what to do when claims are denied. Here are some of the common questions we get. Our responses are general in nature. For specific answers and guidance based on your situation, reach out to our law firm to arrange a free consultation with an experienced life insurance denial lawyer.
If you don’t understand why the claim was denied, ask the insurer for more information. If you believe it was unfairly denied, you can appeal the decision with the insurer. The appeal should be in writing, and it may be sent through regular mail or electronically, depending upon the company’s internal appeals process. You might also file a consumer complaint with the Nevada Division of Insurance, who may be able to help you. However, if you get the help of a Las Vegas life insurance lawyer as soon as your initial claim is denied, we can assist you in preparing an appeal or advise you of your legal options if you have appealed and it was unsuccessful. It is never too late to get legal assistance when a life insurance payout is at stake.
Proving bad faith can be very hard. It is your word against the life insurance company’s. The life insurer employs lawyers who are tasked with looking out for the company’s interests. If you believe the insurer unfairly denied your claim for death benefits, you need a lawyer on your side who understands state and federal insurance laws and how the insurance system works. An experienced Nevada denied life insurance lawyer from our firm will work to build a case that shows there was no reasonable cause for denying your claim. You can help your attorney by gathering all the documentation related to your claim, including the denial letter from the insurer and all emails and other written communications. It is best to communicate with the insurance company in writing, but if you did speak over the phone or face-to-face, make written notes about those interactions.
How long it takes to receive life insurance money depends upon the specific situation. If your initial claim was approved, you should have the life insurance money in anywhere from a couple of weeks to a couple of months. When denials must be appealed, factor in the time it takes you to prepare your appeal and your insurer to review it. Assuming your appeal is successful, this process can increase how long it takes to receive life insurance money by several more months. If you must take legal action to try and get the death benefit, it may take significantly longer. One of our denied life insurance attorneys can counsel you about possible timing based on your unique circumstances.
How much it costs to hire a Las Vegas life insurance lawyer depends upon the individual details of the case, including the amount of work involved and how long it takes to reach a resolution. However, when you file a bad faith insurance suit, you pay us on contingency, not upfront. What this means is that you pay us a percentage of your settlement or award amount. For this reason, we take cases that we believe we have a strong chance of winning. And sometimes in successful bad faith life insurance lawsuits, insurers may be ordered to pay attorney costs, which means you could potentially pay nothing in legal fees.
For information about options you may have following a life insurance death benefits claim denial, call us at (702) 507-0201. We provide free consultations.
Contact a Compassionate Life Insurance Denial Attorney in Nevada
If you are in a dispute with a life insurance company over a death benefit payout, contact Leverty & Associates today. We may be able to help you get the money you need to help ensure your family’s continuing financial security. We understand the emotional stresses survivors face when they are in mourning over the loss of a loved one and have to battle an insurer to get the death benefits they are owed.
If your insurer has unreasonably denied your life insurance claim, our law firm can take on the fight for you and relieve you of the undue stress that you should not have to experience during this difficult time. Contact us at (702) 507-0201 to arrange a free consultation with a compassionate Las Vegas life insurance denial attorney.