Once you incur a disability, you may be desperate to obtain the financial aid required to get through this difficult time. However, you must not allow this desperation to make you hasty and rash in your decision-making before, during, and after filing a Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits application. That is, even though there should be sympathy toward your struggling with a disability, the Social Security Administration (SSA) may be harsh and deny your claim for any small misstep. With all that being said, please continue reading to learn what to avoid doing before filing for SSDI benefits and how an experienced New Jersey SSDI attorney at The Law Offices of Sheryl Gandel Mazur can confirm that you did not make any mistakes on your initial application.
What should I avoid doing before filing for SSDI benefits?
Understandably, you may want to receive your first SSDI benefits payment as soon as possible. But you must not rush the application process and ultimately risk getting rejected due to a lack of evidence. That is, you must take the time to collect a sufficient medical history of your condition, to prove that it is a long-term disability rather than a short-term disability. This will likely entail medical records from the past 12 months or so.
And while you should not hurry with applying, you should see a doctor about your condition straightaway. Again, this is so you can build enough medical history of your condition. Also, this is so you can establish an earlier disability onset date and hopefully receive the maximum amount of backpay for SSDI benefits of 12 months. All the while, you should avoid failing to follow your doctor’s orders while waiting to hear back on your application status. With this behavior, the SSA may assume that you are not making any effort towards reaching a full recovery or returning to the workforce and may conclude that this is a fraudulent application.
What mistakes should I avoid on my SSDI benefits application?
On the one hand, you should avoid downplaying the effects of your condition. Over time, you may become jaded and rather grow accustomed to the alternative way you have had to carry out your day-to-day life since incurring your disability. So if you insinuate that you are “doing fine,” “feeling better,” and capable of resuming a somewhat normal life, the SSA may take this as you can also return to your original employment. Or, at the very least, an alternative employment opportunity that may allow you to maintain substantial gainful activity.
But, on the other hand, you should not exaggerate the severity of your condition. First of all, the SSA may not give you more in monthly SSDI benefits payments if you claim a higher degree of disability. These payments are rather based on your average earnings before you became disabled, along with how long you contributed to the workforce. What’s worse, though, is if the SSA later finds out you overrepresented your disability, they may strip your benefits away effective immediately. Plus, they may order you to pay back the amount of benefits payments you were not technically entitled to.
Before you take any further initiative with your benefits application, we urge you to consult a skilled New Jersey SSDI attorney. Most definitely, the team at The Law Offices of Sheryl Gandel Mazur is eager to work with you.
