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The Basics of Accidental Death and Dismemberment Insurance

Home//Blog//The Basics of Accidental Death and Dismemberment Insurance

Employers commonly offer a range of benefits meant to entice and retain employees, and one such benefit is accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) insurance. Most employers who choose to offer these benefits are bound by the legal regulations of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). AD&D policies can also be purchased independently.

If you’re an AD&D policyholder who suffered a very serious injury that’s categorized as dismemberment, or you’ve lost a loved one to an accidental death and are a claim beneficiary, it’s time to connect with an experienced accidental death and dismemberment attorney.

Your Accidental Death and Dismemberment Claim

Losing a loved one suddenly or suffering a physical disfigurement is a tragic event that no amount of compensation can ever set right. Receiving the compensation to which you are entitled, however, can afford you the resources you need to begin the healing process. The insurers that cover these claims are motivated by profits, and they are not above digging deep or stretching the truth to limit or even deny settlements. All too often, in fact, claims are denied for submission technicalities. 

How Accidental Death and Dismemberment Coverage Works

AD&D insurance is a specific form of insurance that compensates the policyholder if they suffer a major physical loss, like the amputation of a limb, and pays beneficiaries in the event of a policyholder’s accidental death. AD&D differs significantly from traditional life insurance policies, but defining the distinction can be challenging. 

For example, if you are covered by a life insurance policy, and you die after a long fight with cancer, your life insurance policy is triggered. The same is not true, however, of accidental death and dismemberment policies, which are triggered by accidents, such as the following:

  • Traffic accidents
  • Accidents involving heavy machinery
  • Firearm accidents or homicide
  • Serious falls and other physical accidents
  • Accidents that involve drowning

Death or a serious injury that stems from natural causes typically isn’t covered by accidental death and dismemberment policies. This means that if you die suddenly from a heart attack, stroke, or a disease, AD&D is unlikely to apply.

Concurrent Events

There are, however, situations in which a concurrent accidental event is the actual cause of a death that is seemingly illness related. For example, if your loved one suffered a heart attack behind the wheel, which led to a fatal car accident, you may have a case for AD&D if you can demonstrate that the car crash – rather than the heart attack itself – was the fatal event.

Additional circumstances in which a concurrent event may prevail include the following:

  • Circumstances in which a relatively minor accident triggers a sequence of events that proves fatal
  • An accidental injury that requires surgery, which leads to a deadly pulmonary embolism
  • A fatal pulmonary embolism that is caused by a lengthy flight

Proving that the death was accidental in a concurrent events claim is difficult, but an experienced AD&D attorney can help.

Turn to an Experienced Accidental Death and Dismemberment Attorney

The trusted AD&D attorneys at Monahan Tucker Law have extensive experience handling accidental death and dismemberment claims, and we know what insurers look for when approving them. We proudly serve clients across the nation from our offices in Arizona, California, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington. Our team has a proven reputation for successfully challenging denied claims, and we’re here for you, too. To learn more, contact us today. 

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