CalPERS Does Video Disability Applicants

CalPERS Investigators Follow Disability Applicants’ Activities

CalPERS does video disability applicants and recipients which is done by its own investigators. In-house investigators work in the Investigative Unit within the legal department. Its investigators perform surveillance of CalPERS members applying for Disability Retirement or those being medically re-evaluated.  They are tasked with reviewing its members’ social media accounts. Social media includes Facebook and other applications. The goal is to look for information that would contradict the members’ claim of disability. They search for activities or posts that compromise claims of disability.

The investigators are given information regarding the application claims. They are sent to the member’s  place of residence or other known locations to do surveillance of the member’s daily habits. They also obtain DMV vehicle registration to know what car the member may drive. They may actually  follow the member while driving to different venues.

Social media may be used against you to determine your disability retirement benefits.

Investigator’s goals are to capture video of the member’s activities. If the activities differ from the members claims, it may cause the denial of the claim. Social Media is also a source to capture member’s activities that are compromising or uncomplimentary.

Although social media may not provide an accurate reflection of what someone is truly doing with their time, it can provide disability analysts with information that they use to assist in denying one’s claims. It is not usual for a person to document their disability problems on social media but likely one will post information or pictures that their friends will react positively toward such as doing fun activities which may not be an accurate measure of a person’s actual daily life.  

It is best with any social media to limit personal information, check privacy settings and not share information you would not want the world to see. Always consider whether what you post may be misinterpreted. Denial of claims and fraud activities are what claims examiners in all disability matters are seeking to uncover. CalPERS does video disability applicants but it is not done on every case. There is no way to know if a claim will be under the scrutiny of its investigators. Be aware that CalPERS is looking for fraudulent and suspect claims routinely.

Visit our website for more information on what to expect when filing for disability retirement with CalPERS or County Retirement Agencies. https://public-pensions.com. View the job classification for an investigator at https://jobs.ca.gov/CalHrPublic/Jobs/JobPostingPrint.aspx?jcid=117115