Disability Lawyer Sivan Tumarkin talks life insurance denial with Global News

Interview Summary

After paying into a life insurance policy for over two years, Florence Steele was denied a claim after her husband passed away. According to the insurance company, Florence and her husband had provided inaccurate information on their original medical questionnaire in order to receive coverage.

Interview Notes

“I was shocked,” says Florence to Global News’ Sean O’Shea. “That was my biggest problem: I trusted them.”

Sivan Tumarkin, a disability lawyer and national co-managing Partner at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP represents Steele in a legal claim against the insurance company ivari and explains that the insurer has an obligation to honour their policy.

“Under the law, they have to show there was some kind of fraud committed at the beginning,” Tumarkin explains.

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“After the coverage has been in effect for two years, they can’t simply say there was a mistake in the application and so therefore we are going to void your policy,” says Tumarkin.

Tumarkin goes on to explain that there is an imbalance of power between the insurance company and a regular person and insists these denials are actually fairly common.  “Have I seen this before? I’ve seen this many times before,” Tumarkin told Global News.