Evidence mounts against Unum

It appears as if the evidence against health insurance giant Unum keeps mounting after it was recently named the second-worst insurance company in the U.S.

On top of the unwanted distinction in the report "The Ten Worst Insurance Companies in America" from the American Association for Justice, Unum has also been the subject of a slew of lawsuits.

Despite a directive by the federal government for Unum insurance to re-open claims it wrongfully denied, many policyholders continue to complain that the company often acts in bad faith.

In 2005, Unum agreed to a settlement with insurance commissioners in 48 states over the way it had been handling claims.

Yet, the insurance giant eventually confessed that it had only reviewed 10 percent of those claims. In one case, Unum had denied a disability claim of a 43-year-old man who had undergone quintuple bypass surgery and was on doctor's orders to stop working. Unum decided that despite those orders, he was not disabled and could still work. That decision was later overturned by an appeals court saying it defied medical science.

This is just one example of how Unum acted in bad faith and unreasonably denied an insurance claim. The company has also been known to refuse to acknowledge other serious ailments, including fibromyalgia, as a way to avoid payments to qualified policyholders.

People who have been wrongfully denied benefits may want to file an Unum lawsuit or contact a qualified attorney who can start the appeals process.