The first step in applying for Social Security Disability insurance is to determine if you are eligible to receive benefits. You can consult the Social Security website for more information about eligibility, or you may wish to get in touch with an attorney or advocacy group that specializes in assisting people in applying for SSD benefits, and ask about your eligibility. If you do not feel comfortable consulting these sources about your eligibility, you may choose to ask your physician, friends, and family about their experiences with the SSA.
After you have determined that there is a good chance that you are eligible for Disability benefits, you may want to consider working with a professional, be it an advocacy group or an attorney, as you work through the application process. There are several benefits to working with a professional. Namely, you have a higher chance of obtaining the benefits that you need and deserve. Only about 37% of people that apply for Social Security Disability on their own receive benefits, as opposed to over 90% of people that are represented by one of the leading Social Security Disability advocacy groups.
There are no upfront costs when utilizing the services of an attorney or advocacy group. Social Security law limits the fees that a lawyer or advocacy group can charge to 25% of the back pay that is owed to the recipient.
If you have decided to apply for Disability with the assistance of an attorney or advocacy agency, there are several questions that you will want to ask while you are shopping around for the best legal representation for your case.
You will want to ask if the advocacy group or attorney specializes in these kinds of disability cases. Your representative will be best able to assist you if your advocate or legal aids has extensive experience in the process of applying for disability benefits. There are a variety of law firms and groups that work solely with Social Security Disability cases. This is probably the best place to look for assistance.
You will want to ask if your representative that will be making your case to the Social Security Administration will be the representative working with you. You are a unique individual with a unique situation. Reading a report is not an adequate method of learning about who you are what your case is. The representative working on your behalf with the SSA should be the representative that works directly with you so that your needs can be properly explained to the administration.
Lastly, you will want to ensure that the attorney or advocacy group that you are considering working with will accept first time disability applicants. Many attorneys and advocacy groups will not work with an applicant unless a previous application has been denied. Save valuable time by working with an attorney or advocacy group that will work with you from the very beginning.