Common Mistake: Waiting Too Long to Appeal Your SSD Claim

Submitted by rsg on

The Social Security Administration (SSD) denies a majority of claims submitted by applicants. This means there is a good chance the SSA will deny your claim. If the SSA denied your claim, you cannot afford to delay the filing of an appeal.

The SSA typically gives applicants 60 days to file an appeal. If you fail to file an appeal before the SSA-mandated deadline, you have to start over with the application process. Starting over with the application process means you might lose the right to receive the financial assistance you need to pay medical bills and daily living expenses.

Read the Denial Letter

According to a clause in the Social Security statutes, the SSA must send a denial letter to every applicant that had a claim denied by the federal agency. Towards the end of the letter, the SSA states that you have a right to appeal your case within a certain number of days after the date listed on the letter. Although 60 days is a common deadline established by the SSA, confirm the amount of time you have to file an appeal by reading the entire denial letter.

The two most important pieces of information in the denial letter are the date of the letter and the steps you must take to file an appeal with the SSA. The clock starts ticking on the date listed on the denial letter, not the date you received it.

If the date on the letter reads May 1 and you received the denial letter on May 9, then you have 51 days to file an appeal for disability benefits. The instructions for appealing the SSA’s denial of benefits should include information on how to handle the first phase of the appeal process, which is referred to as reconsideration.

The Consequences of Waiting Too Long

Even if you file an appeal before the end of 60 days after the date listed in the denial letter, one or more factors might have dramatically changed to make a negative impact on your claim.

  • Some of your medical information is outdated
  • Loss of back pay
  • Change in the treatment regimen
  • One or more symptoms have gotten worse
  • Your physician has discovered the development of anew symptom

The SSA requires the most recent medical information to make a decision regarding your disability claim. If you file an appeal right after receiving the denial letter, you can send the SSA the latest updates on your medical condition. However, if you wait several weeks to file an appeal, your claim loses its persuasiveness because you present medical information that no longer is relevant.

Contact a Social Security Attorney

You might have completed and submitted the disability application on your own, but you cannot afford to go it alone when it comes to filing an appeal for disability benefits. A Social Security lawyer may find ways to boost the strength of your claim by submitting more convincing medical evidence. Your attorney may also be familiar with the four phases of the appeals process.

Complete the Free Case Evaluation on this page today.

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