Claude worked in City Hall for thirty two years before his death. He was 68 when he died, and the policy was denied.
The widow is suing over a $300,000 life insurance policy. Claude is also asking Anthem and Ansonia to reimburse her attorney fees, court costs, plus any interest on the money owed. Ansonia Aldermen formally acknowledged the lawsuit and referred it to the city's corporation counsel. The president of the board said the city is named in the lawsuit simply because they own the insurance policy.
The Lawsuit
City officials negotiated with Anthem for group life insurance. The city gave the company is list of eligible employees, including Claude. On July 25, Claude stopped working at Ansonia City Hall due to his illness. However, he remained a full-time employee with Ansonia until his death on Sept. 19. Several months prior to Claude's death Anthem issued a group insurance contract to Ansonia, which included the terms of his life insurance.
11 days after he died a claim for the life insurance benefit was submitted to Anthem by the city.
Anthem denied the claim stating that the insurance policy became effective on Aug. 1 — a date when Claude was not actively at work. Anthem officials also denied an appeal of their initial decision. The company said Claude wasn't working then the policy went into effect. Furthermore, Anthem officials said that Claude was not on a list of covered employees given to the company by Ansonia, according to the lawsuit. The lawsuit also states that the widow is owed a number of her husband's fringe benefits, including accrued vacation and holiday time, sick time and personal days. The lawsuit does not provide a monetary value of the fringe benefits.
The most disturbing part for the decedent's family was that they believed that their insurance company was there to protect them. For most consumers, the grief over a loss of a loved one is compounded by the legal battle over the denied life insurance benefits. Our life insurance attorneys urge life insurance beneficiaries whose claims have been denied not to give up, but to sue insurance companies and fight for the benefits. In many cases, insurance companies deny claims based on insufficient evidence the fact that may be revealed only if the case is litigated by an experienced life insurance attorney. We have been recovering awards in denied life insurance claim cases for decades. We are a team of tenacious and passionate life insurance attorneys who represent life insurance beneficiaries against insurance companies.
Call us if you have a denied life insurance claim.