Ok I know that this sounds terribly paranoid, BUT it is true. I am not so sure they were taping/photographing me but here is the story..,
my 2 kids and a neighborhood kid were playing on my dead end street. I noticed a strange car speeding down the street and turning around looking for something. SO I decided to sit out with the kids and keep an eye on them. Later the car returns and parks in front of a house 2 doors down. The car is running. I assumed someone ran into one if the houses. The thing is we are all close on this 5 house street. I knew something was up.
My uncle wnet up to the car and didnt see anyone. well about 10 minutes later someone crawls from bhind the back seat and gets in passenger seat. They back up and stayed there for a minute just yards from the kids. I got ****ed and went to go see what the problem was. Well the guy sped off quite fast when I got up.
Now I am like ***.
My uncle was returning from the store and saw him on the next street which happens to be aa dead end. he cornered the guy and the guy told him he was hiding in the back seat investigating someone in the area. The pollice knew he was in the area yadda yadda.
supposedly....
then we called the police. The guy left.
the purpose of telling you all this story is that ssdi or a workers comp, or LTD company COULD be taping you. Granted I was just sitting there doing nothing, but what if I was carrying a bag or something? they would have pics of this and use it against me, I also wonder if my being on the front page of the local paper regarding Lyme and the controversey stirred this up. This guy could have been lying and he could have been a real PI. There was workers down the street from me too so who knows who he was taping. I just dont like it.
My father had this happen to him with a workers comp case a few years back. My dad caught the guy taping him and took his camera.
So if youre on SSDI, SSI, WC or LTD be careful t hese *******s want nothing better than to spy and take peoples money away.
If I catch another person doing this in my area near my kids he is going to video tape his own beat down.
He wasnt very slick either.
Posted by randibear (Member # 11290) on :
well i've said it before. i've known of three cases where they went and taped people and they lost their benefits.
it's hard to say you're disabled when you're carrying out huge trash cans and mowing the yard -- well at least in their opinion.
you've got to be careful. that's why i don't do anything. maybe a gallon of milk but that's about it.
i ain't paranoid -- it does happen.
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
Could be related to your being on TV... Or.. this guy is stalking children. Even worse!!
Be careful and let us know what happens!
Posted by kam (Member # 3410) on :
Calling the police is a good idea! Hiding in the back seat is just plain weird.
Workmen's comp did take a video of one of the other teachers who was applying for workmen's comp. (We had several come down sick around the same time)
it showed her pushing someone in a wheel chair (thinking that was me as she took me to a few doctor's visits)
But, this was her second workmen's comp claim. She is still receiving help from the other school district she got workmen's comp after falling on site and being told she had fibromalgia??
Bottom line is it most likely was a heads up when she filed the second claim.
She did have health issues but she could last much longer and do much more than I could.
I decided just to be myself and not stress over things after that.
She did get workmen's comp for the second time too with the dx of valley fever and then CFS when she was not able to return to work.
here's hoping we all get well enough we can return to work!!
Posted by Tincup (Member # 5829) on :
Yes, this is a real concern for many. Everything they film, when used against you, is taken out of context.
By filming they can make a case to remove your benefits, out of context or not.
Merry said.. "He wasnt very slick either."
Some are, some aren't. I've caught them in the past ... and they were so stupid and so obvious it wasn't funny!
So do watch what is going on around you... but don't be paranoid. Be sure too that you look UP. They will sometimes film from a spot up high (building top) or even from a little plane.
Just found this in an "ad" by a private investigation firm... I removed their name.
"*** Private Investigators have successfully proven fraud in 95% of cases handled. We found out where the subject lived, set up surveillance, followed the subject & filmed activities.
Of all cases we've handled, *** Private Investigators have only been called to testify 3 times. Each of these times, we did not have to take the stand once our video was presented.
``Our Video Speaks for Itself!''
Maybe we had to film from the top of a tree or an abandoned vehicle, cross a creek, climb over a fence or crawl across a pasture to get the film, but sometimes that's what it takes!
``If they ARE fraudulent, we'll find out...within the boundaries of the law!''
People used to get fired if they were caught committing insurance fraud. Now, with the proof we provide, they not only lose their job but they're made to make restitution & are also usually prosecuted for insurance fraud."
Posted by LightAtTheEnd (Member # 24065) on :
I used to work for attorneys who represented insurance companies in car accidents. The victim would say their back was injured in the wreck and they couldn't work for the next 2 years, and the insurance company would send a PI to take pictures of them bending and lifting groceries, suitcases, etc., and then claim their back was not really disabling them.
It does happen.
I'm not sure there is that much we can do about it--we have to live our lives, and sometimes there's no one to do these things for us so we just have to do them for ourselves. Still, avoid appearing more able than you are in public places, and don't post pictures of yourself on Facebook getting drunk on a cruise or anything like that. (They will also try saying if you can go on vacation, then you can work.)
The ones I heard of were car accident victims. I don't know about Lyme patients. But nobody thinks we look sick, and I have been very successful at hiding my illness at work for more than a year. It is difficult to convince anybody that we're ill in the first place. It would be easy to make the claim that we are not as sick as we and our doctors say we are, if somebody had a monetary interest in claiming that.
I think it is a terrible thing that someone can spy on your private life and take pictures of you and your family and use them against you.
Posted by seekhelp (Member # 15067) on :
The insurance companies are ba##ards....simple as that. Ruthless as can be. Don't ever doubt this. This is no surprise incident. It happens every day everywhere. You're kidding yourself if you don't believe it.
Posted by Sophie1234 (Member # 26412) on :
Does SSDI send out people? I would think the government wouldn't have the $$$ to pay PI's.
Posted by onbam (Member # 23758) on :
Call the police and out the *******.
Posted by Robin123 (Member # 9197) on :
Merrygirl, when you see them, think of the possibilities...
Drop everything you're holding, constantly, no matter how many times you pick it all up.
Yell out with every step you take.
Sit down every couple steps and hold your head in your hands and moan.
Keel over and crawl on your stomach to your front door.
Majorly drool.
And more!
(Don't chew me out - was just trying to think of ways to help you...)
Posted by Tracy9 (Member # 7521) on :
I have never, ever heard of this happening with SSDI. The government doesn't have the time or the money, or the follow through. Look at the Medicare fraud issue they have.
I believe it is only an issue with private insurance companies.
Posted by Tracy9 (Member # 7521) on :
Besides that, with SSDI you are ALLOWED to work part time, and only have to be disabled enough to not be able to work full time. Now I know it is hard to get approved, but once you are approved, you can legitimately work part time.
You aren't going to lose SSDI because you can lift, walk, or go on vacation...many of us have it for cognitive issues, not being able to stand or sit for 8 hours, etc. The whole SSDI process asks if you can do these things for 8 hours, 5 days a week. Not for a few minutes or now and then.
Posted by seekhelp (Member # 15067) on :
This is the issue for private disability insurance.
Posted by erikjh1972 (Member # 20964) on :
maybe he was "spying" on the kids. he could be just a run of the mill pervert. he was just using that as a back story. i'd keep an eye out none the less.
Posted by Tracy9 (Member # 7521) on :
Very worrisome; did the police confirm they knew he was in the area? Because I do think private investigators have to alert the police and show their credentials, etc. The one that was in my driveway once (watching a neighbor) actually had a personalized license plate that said "Spy One" or something. Really sneaky.
I'd be mostly concerned the guy was a child molester.
Posted by sometimesdilly (Member # 9982) on :
Too weird, Merry.
Ditto what Tracy says that it is unlikely to be SSDI or federal government related, tho, stranger things have happened, I admit.
I agree with Tracy though, that the feds don't have the resources or the know-how to be zero-ing in on the disabled. If anything, I imagine that going after the disabled to save a few dollars would make for truly terrible politics.
All bets are off, though, for any of us on SSDI who put videos and pics on Facebook or the like which can be interpreted as looking like we're "normal."
As Robin suggests, if you gots-to, at least fumble, fall & drool while you do so.
(((merry)) be good to yourself--- dill
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
quote:Originally posted by erikjh1972: [QB] maybe he was "spying" on the kids. he could be just a run of the mill pervert. he was just using that as a back story. i'd keep an eye out none the less.
That is my fear too!
Posted by burnsjw (Member # 11819) on :
My neighbor lady use to work for an insurance agency out in Calf. who watched and took pictures to check up on people receiving disability. The insurance company also contracted out to other agencies to check up on people.
Posted by Misfit (Member # 26270) on :
My 1st thought would've been that he was some child molester. Since i will admit to HATING ppl who abuse children ill stop there.
Posted by thejoje (Member # 19976) on :
This happened to my next door neighbor. I saw the pictures --they were taken from my property and without my knowledge by an agent of the former employer. It was a worker's comp case, however.
Posted by randibear (Member # 11290) on :
because of the publicity, it could very well be that they would send someone.
if you're low under the radar they probably don't pay much attention, but if you surface, then i'd say all bets are off.
Posted by MADDOG (Member # 18) on :
Social security doesen't expect you to be in a nursing home.
Not able to earn a living wage,is the rules,that means you can work, but not fast enuf to make more than 980 bucks a month.
Case in point,I was an auto mechanic,I worked on cars 38 years,i got so sick i could not work fast enuf to make a boss enuf money to pay me to fix cars and still pay my health insurance, worker comp,heat the building,pay his rent and all the stuff necessary for the boss to make money on my work.
I can take 4 days to put an alternator on my car, using pry bars and thin wall tubing on the wrenches for leverage,and fix it in plain vieue of everyone, but I cant make a living putting one alternator on one car in four days.
I think you had a child molestor stalking the neighborhood,not a SS spy.
MADDOG
Posted by METALLlC BLUE (Member # 6628) on :
I've also been spied on. Only they weren't so blatantly obvious about it. They stalked me online and read and recorded all my posts where I mentioned that I was "Feeling better today."
Unum Insurance threatened me with these documents when I had my lawyer contact them to inform them I was suing them for terminating my long term disability insurance.
In the end, the insurance company was too powerful and my lawyer told me that he could probably win, but it was significantly doubtful I would get any amount that was substantial enough to feel satisfied. He said it would drag through court for a few years and I'd end up paying all my money in fees and that my health would deteriorate from the stress.
He says that once you take a giant corporation to court, it doesn't just end with you sitting and waiting. He said you end up having phone threats, further spying, as well as confrontation -- even threats on your life.
I told him "How do they get away with this in a country like ours?"
He said "Because they've got money and a lot of resources and you don't."
Posted by lymednva (Member # 9098) on :
My LTD company spied on me. they scared the neighborhood to death when he parked right across from the bus stop and refused to tell people why he was there!
I know about it because my attorney got it while working on my disability retirement case.
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