Send in your Social Security Disability Appeal Asap
Here's a simple tip for individuals who have applied for disability benefits with the social security administration and have been denied. Send in your disability appeal immediately. Why do I say this, particularly when the advice may seem so very obvious?
For this reason. As a disability examiner working on social security disability and SSI cases, I found that an alarmingly high number of individuals who had been previously denied for disability had failed to request an appeal and then turn in the paperwork in a timely manner. Consequently, they were forced to file brand new applications and were, in the great majority of instances, subsequently denied again. Had those individuals simply submitted their appeals on time, they could have saved several months of lost time and possibly received their benefits months sooner.
The social security administration actually gives claimants a fairly generous amount of time in which to submit an appeal following a denial that occurs at any level of the claim system. The appeal period, the time in which a claimant is allowed to file an appeal, is 60 days from the date of the denial notice. However, claimants are actually given an additional five days to account for mailing, so claimants are really given 65 days from the date of the denial to get their appeal sent in.
By sending in a social security disability appeal, or an SSI disability appeal, a claimant can move their claim further along in the system to a point where the chances of being approved are much higher.
The first appeal, the request for reconsideration, does not typically offer a better chance of approval. And this is largely because the reconsideration appeal is handled by the same agency that is responsible for making a determination on the initial claim (the agency is known in most states as DDS, or disability determination services). In fact, in most states, the chances of being denied on the reconsideration appeal are actually higher than the chances of being denied on the initial claim.
However, claimants who get denied on the reconsideration appeal are permitted to file a second appeal. This appeal is a request for a hearing before an administrative law judge. At the hearing level, where claimants are permitted to have their case argued by a disability representative, the odds of being approved for disability are 60 percent or greater for all claims. And for claimants who are adults (versus children) and have certain physical or mental impairments, the odds of approval may be substantially higher than this.
How do you ensure that your disability appeal will be submitted on time? Simply contact the social security administration as soon as you receive a disability notice of denial on your claim. Then, when your appeal paperwork arrives, immediately complete the forms and return them. If you are represented, of course, you should probably still contact the social security administration and notify them that you wish to file an appeal (to cover your bases). However, after you do this you should contact your disability representative so that they may file the appeal on your behalf.
Note: if you are represented and have notified your representative (a disability attorney or a non-attorney claimant's representative) that an appeal needs to be filed, you may find it helpful to followup with your representative's office a couple of weeks later.
Why? Because some representative's offices take the attitude that as long as the appeal is sent in before the deadline, everything is fine. However, in actuality, the appeal should be sent in well before the 60 day deadline simply to avoid processing time on the case, so not a single day, other than what is absolutely necessary, is spent on the case.
Return to:
Social Security Disability Secrets
Social Security Disability Benefit Questions
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Social Security Disability Notice of Denial and what it means
What is Social Security Disability and what is SSI?
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How Likely Would I Be To Qualify for Social Security Disability Benefits?
Can Someone Claim Social Security Disability if They Have Never Worked?
What Happens at a Physical Exam for Social Security Disability or SSI?
Social Security Disability Appeal Deadlines
What is the Average Time for an SSI Appeal?
For this reason. As a disability examiner working on social security disability and SSI cases, I found that an alarmingly high number of individuals who had been previously denied for disability had failed to request an appeal and then turn in the paperwork in a timely manner. Consequently, they were forced to file brand new applications and were, in the great majority of instances, subsequently denied again. Had those individuals simply submitted their appeals on time, they could have saved several months of lost time and possibly received their benefits months sooner.
The social security administration actually gives claimants a fairly generous amount of time in which to submit an appeal following a denial that occurs at any level of the claim system. The appeal period, the time in which a claimant is allowed to file an appeal, is 60 days from the date of the denial notice. However, claimants are actually given an additional five days to account for mailing, so claimants are really given 65 days from the date of the denial to get their appeal sent in.
By sending in a social security disability appeal, or an SSI disability appeal, a claimant can move their claim further along in the system to a point where the chances of being approved are much higher.
The first appeal, the request for reconsideration, does not typically offer a better chance of approval. And this is largely because the reconsideration appeal is handled by the same agency that is responsible for making a determination on the initial claim (the agency is known in most states as DDS, or disability determination services). In fact, in most states, the chances of being denied on the reconsideration appeal are actually higher than the chances of being denied on the initial claim.
However, claimants who get denied on the reconsideration appeal are permitted to file a second appeal. This appeal is a request for a hearing before an administrative law judge. At the hearing level, where claimants are permitted to have their case argued by a disability representative, the odds of being approved for disability are 60 percent or greater for all claims. And for claimants who are adults (versus children) and have certain physical or mental impairments, the odds of approval may be substantially higher than this.
How do you ensure that your disability appeal will be submitted on time? Simply contact the social security administration as soon as you receive a disability notice of denial on your claim. Then, when your appeal paperwork arrives, immediately complete the forms and return them. If you are represented, of course, you should probably still contact the social security administration and notify them that you wish to file an appeal (to cover your bases). However, after you do this you should contact your disability representative so that they may file the appeal on your behalf.
Note: if you are represented and have notified your representative (a disability attorney or a non-attorney claimant's representative) that an appeal needs to be filed, you may find it helpful to followup with your representative's office a couple of weeks later.
Why? Because some representative's offices take the attitude that as long as the appeal is sent in before the deadline, everything is fine. However, in actuality, the appeal should be sent in well before the 60 day deadline simply to avoid processing time on the case, so not a single day, other than what is absolutely necessary, is spent on the case.
Return to:
Other Posts
Social Security Disability Notice of Denial and what it means
What is Social Security Disability and what is SSI?
Can Someone Get Social Security Disability For Type II Bipolar Disorder?
How Likely Would I Be To Qualify for Social Security Disability Benefits?
Can Someone Claim Social Security Disability if They Have Never Worked?
What Happens at a Physical Exam for Social Security Disability or SSI?
Social Security Disability Appeal Deadlines
What is the Average Time for an SSI Appeal?
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