Is It Common For a Loan Modification To Be Delayed?
When you are having trouble making your house payments, there are options that might work well for you. One of these options is a loan modification. This is when the bank changes your loan so that you have a lower, more affordable monthly payment. Many people who try to obtain a loan modification have been facing delays of all types.
When trying to get a loan modification, there is a lot of paperwork that the lender will need to determine whether you will qualify. Once the documents are submitted to the lender, some people will then get notification from the bank that either they are missing paperwork or that additional paperwork is needed. Another thing that seems to be common lately in the process is the lender telling the homeowner that they have missed a deadline. If that happens, they may even go back to the beginning of the process and start everything over. Typically, that means the homeowner has new deadlines, and has to submit all or some the paperwork over again.
It seems common lately for banks to say that they will not even consider a loan modification if you are current on the payments. They encourage people to stop making the payments so that they will have a better chance of getting a loan modification. Then, after the homeowner is several months behind in payments, the bank denies them the modification and the foreclosure process begins.
Typically, after applying for a loan modification, the lender will put the homeowner on a trial period for a few months at the lower payment amount. Make sure you keep all information pertaining to these payments. It has not been uncommon lately for the lender to either say they did not receive the payment on time or at all, or they do not credit the payment to your account correctly.
So if you are looking into the possibility of modifying your loan, be sure you are prepared for the possibility of long delays and a lot of paperwork. There could be more than one person handling your account, so make sure you write down and keep track of the entire process, including who you talk to, what papers you receive in the mail, what payments you send in, etc. Also, be sure you are persistent and follow up with the bank so you don’t slip through the cracks.
Will the Insurance Company Provide me with Transportation in a Worker’s Comp Claim?
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Yes, the insurance company can provide you with transportation to receive medical care that is approved by the insurance company or the North Carolina Industrial Commission. Usually you must provide your own transportation, but the insurance company will reimburse you the expenses. However, if your injury makes it difficult to drive to and from your medical treatment then the insurance company may be compelled to provide you with transportation by the Industrial Commission.
Currently the North Carolina law requires the worker’s compensation to reimburse you $0.565 per mile as of January 2013. This amount may change as the cost of gasoline changes. To be reimbursed, your trip must be more than 20 miles round trip. Normally you will not be reimbursed for medication and supplies on a separate trip in which you did not receive medical care. These medications and supplies must be purchased on the same trip you are receiving your medical care.
Special consideration will be provided to persons that are unable to drive to receive their medical treatments. The worker’s compensation insurance company, on the orders of the Industrial Commission, may provide special transportation for those injured workers, such as a special van for wheel chairs, etc.
In the event you must stay overnight for your medical care, certain expenses are covered. These are normally hotel rooms up to $45 per day. You may receive up to $28 per day for food. You can also be reimbursed for parking and cab expense for your medical treatment. However, you must provide actual receipts as proof of your expenses that will be reimbursed to you.
To be reimbursed for your travel expenses, you must complete, sign, and submit North Carolina Industrial Commission Form 25T and your receipts to the worker’s compensation insurance company for reimbursement. Be sure and keep a copy of the form and your receipts for your own records.
What is the Workers’ Compensation Medical Status Questionnaire?
What if you are injured at work and your employer or their insurance provider want to know from the doctor the status of your injury? One of the ways they can do this is by simply requesting the treating physician to fill out a Medical Status Questionnaire to the physician. This is a form that allows them to ask specific questions regarding your diagnosis and/or prognosis. The employer/insurance provider will also need to attach a description of your position with them, as that may be necessary for the physician to consult for the answers to some of the items. They can also request from the physician that they include the answers on the form itself, in medical notes or in a letter to the employer or their insurance provider. Of course, if the physician does not have enough information to have an opinion on any of the items, they are not required to answer them. The medical status questionnaire can be found on the North Carolina Industrial Commission’s website.
Most of the items that are included in the questionnaire pertain to when the employee will be able to return to work and what, if any, limitations the employee will need when they return as a result of the injury. The diagnosis is one of the first pieces of information requested. The next set of questions are very important to your workers’ compensation claim. They ask the doctor if it is their belief that the job duties at work either caused or aggravated your injury.
The next few items inquire about any additional medical conditions that the employee may already have that are affected or worsened by the new injury, what the treatment plan for the work place injury is and whether any medications prescribed for the injury may affect judgment or ability to perform certain jobs. If the employee is able to return to work doing the same job as before the injury occurred, the next two items on the questionnaire are not necessary and the physician is instructed to skip to the last question. If the employee is not able to return to work at the same job description, the physician must provide the restrictions that will be needed when the employee returns to work and how long the restrictions will be necessary.
The questions that are included in the medical status questionnaire are the only items that are allowed to be asked by the employer or insurance provider directly to the physician. The employer or their insurance providers are not required to ask all of the questions that are included on the form. There is a place for them to check which items they need to be addressed, which may or may not be all questions on the form. They also do not have to have permission from you (as the employee) to have the physician fill out this form, as stated in North Carolina General Statute Section 97-25.6 (c)(2). Once the form is filled out, the physician must provide the responses to the employer or their insurance provider and the employee and his or her attorney or other representative.
