When you file a\u00a0long-term disability<\/a>\u00a0claim, it is common for the insurance investigator to call you and ask casual questions about your health and daily life. Next, they will say, “We want to send someone to your home to meet with you to discuss your claim.” This is called a field interview. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Do not be fooled! They are not calling to check on you because they care. The insurance company will say they need to meet face-to-face to discuss how you are doing, but field interviews are used to discredit claimants filing for disability. They are looking for inconsistencies in your story to prove to a judge that you are lying about your disability. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Thanks to modern-day technology, insurance companies will have your complete background at their fingertips. They can access your medical history, credit report, liens or bankruptcies, child support, and delinquent payments. During the field interview, they will use this information to trick you into saying something that makes you appear dishonest. Go over this information with your attorney before the field interview. Plan to be asked some tough questions and stay calm. Your attorney will help guide you through these tough questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sometimes, insurance investigators will put you under surveillance before your interview<\/a>. They will question your neighbors about your daily activities. They will watch you and follow you to see if you are doing anything that you said you couldn\u2019t. They will record you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Be vigilant! Please do not overdo it. Sometimes, your doctor may encourage you to continue your daily life to speed up your recovery. Still, an insurance investigator sees this as you telling a lie about the severity of your condition. Although the actual surveillance cannot be used against you, the insurance company will ask your doctor to look at the tape and comment on your physical activities that can affect your case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When the insurance company calls to \u201ccheck on you,\u201d they will try to persuade you to have the field interview in your home. They are trained to speak a certain way to make you feel you have no choice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That is not true.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n You have the right to have your field interview at another location, and you should. Why? The insurance investigator is trained to go into your home and take notes on how to live. If you have a large TV, if your home has stairs, if you have pets, or if other people are living there. They will use all of this to build a case against you. You do not have to let them in your home. Arrange for the meeting to be somewhere else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n You have the right to have your attorney present. An insurance investigator might discourage you from bringing your attorney by implying it is just a simple face-to-face conversation. Don\u2019t let them fool you. Your attorney is trained to assist you and support you. Having an experienced attorney present will help to prevent you from getting intimidated by the insurance company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Your interview will go smoothly if you spend time preparing yourself for the interview. Let your neighbors know that there is a possibility that an investigator will come to see them to snoop around. Take it easy, and don\u2019t push yourself in the days before your interview. Go over anything that may come up during the interview with your attorney. Although field interviews can be scary, you can get through them if you prepare properly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n First, does an individual have to participate in a field interview? You are probably here because you are wondering, \u201cHey, the company just called me. Do I have to meet with them to engage in this field interview?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n As you will see time and time again on this website, your obligation to participate in the field interview comes down to (i) the policy and (ii) the obligations and requirements under the terms of that policy. Most policies do not require that you participate in the field interview process under their proof of loss requirements. However, some policies do. Therefore, it is essential to carefully review your policy\u2019s proof of loss requirements to determine if you first have to participate in that field interview with an insurance company representative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Assuming you are not required by the long-term disability insurance policy to participate in a field interview, you should still weigh the pros and cons of meeting with the representative versus not meeting them. You do not need to worry because the insurance company called for one. For some insurance companies, field interviews are simply routine. They may have a protocol where they say, \u201cEvery two years, we\u2019re going to send someone out to meet with you.\u201d And that is just the way that a particular company handles its claims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, there are certain companies that, if they\u2019re calling you for a field interview, it is not a good sign. For example,\u00a0the insurance company may have just completed a week of video surveillance on you. Now, they will try to enter your home, sit you down, and go through a specific line of questioning with you. The representative may make you feel comfortable with them. They\u2019ll tell you they\u2019re not there to harm you or your benefits. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Then they pop open their laptop computer and say, \u201cOh, can you explain what you\u2019re doing here and why were you able to move in this way? And why didn\u2019t you report it to the insurance company?\u201d You may feel like you have your back against the wall and you\u2019re just saying random things in self-defense. The next thing you know \u2013 the insurance company uses your statement to deny your claim or terminate your benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For this reason, we recommend that you never undergo a field interview without representation from an attorney. If you intend to move forward independently, you should be prepared. You want to prepare with someone familiar with the process who could explain what to expect at the field interview. Again, please do not believe the insurance company is going to your house because they care about you and are looking out for you. You must understand that they are looking for sufficient evidence to deny your claim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In many cases, the field interview process is benign. The field interviewer may be there to obtain an update, review some additional questions with you, review some recent medical treatment you\u2019ve had, update your medical folder, including your current list of doctors and why you are seeing them, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In short, it is like preparing for a hurricane. You do not know if that hurricane will hit and destroy your home, but you go through the preparations to ensure that you will limit the damage. The same preparation needs to occur with these field interviews. It would help if you prepared yourself so you do not cause much damage to your disability insurance claim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are a couple of different scenarios that you might see during a field interview. For example, MetLife<\/a> is employing some full-time field interviewers. These representatives work for MetLife and conduct the interviews. Hartford<\/a> has some full-time employees who perform interviews as well. On the other hand, Unum<\/a> may hire a third-party company to conduct the field interview. These third parties may not know much about your disability claim except for perhaps what\u2019s on the one-page summary the disability insurance company sent them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There can be a lot of frustration with an interview conducted by a third party. That\u2019s because this person may come to your home, ask you questions for several hours, ask you tons of questions that are already answered in the claim file, and ask you a bunch of questions that may be wildly inappropriate. We try to eliminate duplicative and inappropriate questions to make these meetings go as quickly as possible. You should not have to sit for the interview any more than you have to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Most insurance examiners will try to insist that you have the field interview in your home. They want to come inside your home and take notes on how you live, whether you have stairs, whether your home is tidy, who you have living there, etc. Your attorney will advise you to meet at a neutral location to protect you against this.<\/p>\n\n\n\nTips to Prepare You for a Field Interview:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Background Checks<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Pre-Interview Surveillance<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Interview Location<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
You Have the Right to Have Your Attorney Present<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Preparation is Important<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Does A Claimant Have to Permit the Field Interview?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Should A Claimant Voluntarily Participate in the Field Interview?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Representation By An Attorney?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The Importance of a Field Interview in the Claim<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Who Is Conducting the Field Interview?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Ways Insurance Investigators Try to Trick You and How to Avoid The Traps<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Do Not Have an Interview In Your Home<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Be Aware of Surveillance Before and After<\/h3>\n\n\n\n