I am one of the fortunate ones who had private disability insurance when I was diagnosed. Although I hated making those payments, I did it for years and never missed a one. When I was first diagnosed, one of the companies sent an investigator who wanted
"to put a face with the name" to check me out. Fortunately I am a lawyer and had a former partner who specializes in insurance law who offered to help me for free, so I had the guy meet me at my lawyer's office and directed that all future communication be through my lawyer.

The company did pay, but I still did not appreciate a guy coming to investigate me...after all I had throat cancer, not carpal tunnel syndrome! Recently the other company ( I had policies with two companies ) sent its fraud investigator to check me out and "put a face with the name". I also had this fellow meet me at my lawyer's office.

Now company number one is sending a CPA to town to go over my tax returns, income statements and calendar in an effort to justify stopping payments. The irony is that I bought my policies back in the days when they allowed you to specify your " own occupation ", meaning if I cannot perform the main duties of my profession, they must pay. My occupation was specified as " trial lawyer." Our contention is that I still cannot try big, long, hard, jury trials, due to speech problems, fatigue, swallowing difficulties, etc.
The insurance companies want to ignore this approach and talk about how much money I am earning and how many hours I spend at the office.

Isn't it funny how the guy that sells you these policies is always a fine fellow, someone that you grew up with or whose kids go to school with yours. But when the catastrophe that you insured against arises and you make a claim, you encounter a whole different set of characters who are determined to pay you as little as possible, if anything at all.

Ah, insurance companies!

Danny G.