Submitting a disability claim online – FAQ for plan members

If your plan is set up to allow disability claim submissions online, you can do so by going to Manulife.ca and logging in to your plan on the website. Click on Submit a Disability Claim in the right-hand navigation pane, select the benefits for which you are applying, and follow the instructions.

• Short-Term Disability (STD)
• Long-Term Disability (LTD)
• Absence Management Consultation Services (AMCS)
• Critical Illness (CI)
• Accidental Death & Dismemberment (AD&D)

Yes. Manulife uses encryption to ensure confidential information is kept safe. Information provided to Manulife is kept private and confidential, and is not shared with anyone without your consent.

Manulife requires information about you, your work, and your medical condition. This may include:

• your plan contract number, which you can obtain from your employer or Plan Administrator (these numbers are also found on your benefits card, which you can find on the plan member site under Coverage, then under Your Benefits or on the Manulife Mobile app).
• contact information so that we can reach you.
• details about your job and salary.
• the nature of your condition or injury along with symptoms .
• information regarding your treating physician(s).

Not necessarily. Your group number refers to your overall group benefits plan. Your plan contract number is specific to the type of benefit for which you are applying. You can get your plan contract number from your employer, plan sponsor, or they are also found on your benefits card, which you can find on the plan member site under Coverage, then under Your Benefits, or on the Manulife Mobile App.

There are some fields on our forms that require a response before you proceed. If you have not completed these fields, you will see error messages at the top of the screen asking you to fix them. These will be highlighted on the form by either a red asterisk next to the field, or the field itself will be highlighted in red.

Yes, there may be other documents, or forms that we will need in order to review your claim. These may include:

• Copy of a void cheque - we ask that you include a copy of a voided cheque. This can be done by simply taking a picture of your cheque, and uploading it to your claim submission.
• Copy of a police report – if your claim is in relation to a motor vehicle accident, we ask that you include a copy of the police report, if available.
• Attending Physician’s Statement (APS) – Depending on the benefit for which you are applying, an APS may be required to be completed by your physician. You can print this form from our site (Long-term disability APS or Short-term disability APS), have your physician complete it, and either upload it to your submission, or you can send it via e-mail, fax or regular post.  Instructions are included on the form. A link to the APS will be included in the confirmation you get after you submit your claim online. You can also find forms you need in the forms section of the Plan Member site.
• Plan Member Authorization, Certification & Agreement – for Manulife to process your claim, we require a signed authorization from you. You will be asked to electronically acknowledge your claim submission on our online form, however you will also be asked to print off the authorization form, sign it, and send it back to us. If you didn’t print off the authorization, please call us at 1-877-481-9169 and we will send one to you.

You will see sections throughout the form where you can upload these documents. If you have pictures or scanned images of them, you can upload them directly from your computer. Just click on Choose to select the file you wish to upload, and then click on Upload to upload it.

You can upload files in these formats: PDF, JPEG, JPG, PNG, TIF, TIFF, JPE, JFIF and GIF - including pictures taken with your smart phone, or documents you scan to your computer. You can upload a maximum of 10 files, at a maximum file size of 5 MB (megabytes) per file.

Manulife routinely audits online claims. We recommend maintaining your own copy of any information you send to us. However, you’re required to your receipts for 12 months from the date you submit a claim.

Yes. Each time you click Next on our forms, the system will save your spot, so that when you come back, you can pick up from where you left off. Clicking Save will do the same thing.

To find claims you have started, but haven’t yet submitted, see the Claims In Progress section of the benefit selection page.

Yes. You will receive a confirmation message, along with a confirmation number at the time you submit your claim that you can use to reference your claim submission. This is NOT your claim number. A claim number will be assigned once all information has been received.

The confirmation message will contain important information, including additional documents you may be required to provide, for example, a signed authorization form and an Attending Physician’s Statement.

You will also receive an e-mail confirming receipt of your claim, along with the same confirmation number.

Yes. Just log back in using your ID and password, click on Submit a disability claim, and under the section titled Submitted Claims, you will find your submitted claim. Click on attachments, and you can upload more documents or images to the same claim.

Yes. Our system will save any progress you make when completing the claim forms. You will see these on the home page under Claims in Progress. There you will be able to view the information you have entered so far, edit a claim you haven’t submitted yet, change or upload new attachments, or delete the claim if you started it in error.

You will also see claims that you have already submitted. You cannot delete a submitted claim or attachments.

Once all information is received, your claim will be reviewed by a Case Manager. Upon review, your Case Manager will reach out to you to with the decision on your claim.

For more information, please call the Manulife contact center at 1-877-481-9169.