Disability insurance benefits are meant to provide financial stability while you focus on your health. Yet, many people are shocked to learn that insurance companies sometimes conduct surveillance on disability claimants. This practice can feel invasive and create anxiety about everyday activities.
Being watched, filmed, or followed is unsettling. Everyday tasks—like buying groceries, attending a family event, or driving to an appointment—can suddenly feel risky. If you’ve ever wondered whether you’re being watched or worried that normal activities could be used against you, you’re not alone.
This article explains how disability benefits surveillance works, what insurers are actually looking for, and what your legal rights are if surveillance is used to challenge your claim.
What Is Disability Benefits Surveillance?
Disability benefits surveillance occurs when an insurance company hires a private investigator to observe, photograph, or record a claimant’s activities in public spaces. The goal is to gather evidence that could be used to question the severity of your condition and justify denying or terminating your benefits.
This insurance company surveillance can include:
- Video recordings or photographs taken outside your home
- Footage of you running errands, driving, or attending appointments
- Observations of your behaviour at social gatherings, stores, or community events
Insurers claim this is a tool to verify whether a claimant’s reported limitations match their real-world activities. In practice, surveillance footage is often selective, incomplete, and taken out of context to build a case against you.
Why and When Do Insurers Use Surveillance?
Insurance company surveillance is rarely random. It is most often used when an insurer is reassessing a claim or looking for grounds to terminate benefits.
Surveillance is more common when:
- A claim has been active for a long period
- The disability involves conditions that are difficult to measure objectively, such as chronic pain, fibromyalgia, fatigue, or mental health disorders
- The policy is approaching a key date, such as the 24-month “change of definition” from own occupation to any occupation
- The insurer is actively seeking cost-cutting opportunities
It is important to remember that being under surveillance does not mean you have done anything wrong. In many cases, it is a broad “fishing expedition” to find information that can be used to challenge your claim.
What Are Insurers Really Looking For?
The primary objective of insurance company surveillance is not to get a complete picture of your health. Instead, investigators focus on capturing brief moments that can be portrayed as evidence that you are more functional than your medical evidence suggests.
They are typically trying to record activities they can argue demonstrate an ability to:
- Sit, stand, walk, lift, or carry objects
- Drive for short or extended periods
- Concentrate or interact socially
- Perform tasks that resemble work-related activity
A brief, edited clip of you carrying groceries or attending a family barbecue may be presented as “proof” that you are capable of full-time employment—while ignoring pain, fatigue, symptom flare-ups, and recovery time.
Why Surveillance Footage Is Often Misleading
Surveillance evidence has serious limitations and frequently paints a distorted picture of life with a disability.
Common problems include:
- It captures isolated moments: Footage shows minutes, not your entire day or what happens afterward
- It ignores invisible symptoms: Pain, dizziness, fatigue, anxiety, and cognitive difficulties are not visible on video
- It lacks medical context: Investigators are not doctors, and footage is presented without clinical explanation
- It is selectively edited: Insurers highlight only what supports their position
Courts have consistently recognized that the ability to perform limited daily activities does not equate to the ability to work reliably, predictably, and sustainably.
Can Insurers Use Social Media as Surveillance?
Yes. Reviewing social media has become a standard part of insurance company surveillance.
Insurers often review public content on platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn. Photos, videos, captions, comments, and check-ins can all be taken out of context.
A single post from a “good day” may be used to challenge your credibility or minimize your condition. Claimants should be cautious and understand that online activity can be misinterpreted.
What Are Your Legal Rights as a Disability Claimant?
If you suspect surveillance—or if an insurer relies on it to deny or terminate your claim—how you respond matters. Once surveillance is raised, insurers often move quickly toward benefit termination, making early action critical.
Key steps include:
- Do not panic: Continue living your life honestly and within your doctors’ restrictions
- Follow medical advice: Adhere consistently to recommended limitations
- Keep a symptom diary: Document pain levels, fatigue, flare-ups, and recovery time
- Speak with a lawyer: Early disability lawyer involvement can prevent surveillance from being overstated or misused
Can Surveillance Alone Justify Cutting Off Disability Benefits?
No. Surveillance is only one piece of evidence and must be weighed against the full medical record.
This includes:
- Opinions from treating doctors and specialists
- Medical records and clinical findings
- Functional limitations over time
- The consistency of the evidence as a whole
When insurers rely on short video clips while ignoring substantial medical documentation, benefit terminations can often be successfully challenged through appeal or litigation.
How Kotak Law Helps in Surveillance-Based Disability Claims
Surveillance-based denials require experienced, strategic handling. At Kotak Law, disability law is our primary focus, and we have decades of experience acting exclusively for injured and disabled individuals against insurance companies.
We regularly help clients by:
- Demanding full disclosure of all surveillance footage and reports
- Identifying inconsistencies, flaws, and misleading interpretations
- Placing surveillance into proper medical and legal context
- Working directly with treating physicians to address insurer concerns
- Pushing cases toward resolution through negotiation, mediation, or litigation
Surveillance may feel overwhelming, but it does not give insurers the final word.
Final Thoughts
If your disability benefits were denied or terminated because of insurance company surveillance, remember this: a short video clip is not a medical diagnosis.
It does not erase the medical reality of your condition, and it does not eliminate your legal rights. With proper legal guidance, surveillance-based denials can be challenged—and often overturned.
Frequently Asked Questions About Disability Benefits Surveillance
Can an insurance company legally put me under surveillance?
Yes. Insurance companies are generally allowed to conduct surveillance in public places. However, surveillance must be lawful and reasonable, and it does not override the insurer’s obligation to fairly assess your medical evidence.
Q. Does surveillance automatically mean my benefits will be cut off?
No. Surveillance alone is not enough to justify terminating disability benefits. It must be considered alongside medical records, doctors’ opinions, and the overall consistency of the evidence.
Q. Can insurers record me inside my home?
No. Insurers cannot record you inside your home or in other private spaces. Surveillance is limited to what can be observed in public.
Q. What if surveillance shows me doing everyday activities?
Being able to perform limited daily activities—such as grocery shopping or attending a family event—does not mean you are capable of working full-time. Courts recognize the difference between daily living and sustained employment.
Q. Can my social media posts affect my disability claim?
Yes. Insurers often review public social media posts. Even content from a rare “good day” can be taken out of context and used against you.
Q. Should I change my behaviour if I think I’m being watched?
No. You should continue living your life honestly and within your medical restrictions. Changing behaviour unnaturally can raise credibility concerns.
Q. What should I do if my claim is denied because of surveillance?
You should speak with an experienced disability lawyer as soon as possible. A lawyer can review the surveillance evidence, challenge misleading interpretations, and protect your rights.
Q. How can Kotak Law help?
Kotak Law focuses exclusively on disability law and has extensive experience challenging surveillance-based denials. We ensure surveillance is properly scrutinized and weighed against the full medical evidence.
