You may be grateful for the Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits you receive to meet your basic needs. However, there may come a time when these payments go well beyond what you need to support your basic needs. This is when an issue of overpayment may arise, which must be reported before the Social Security Administration (SSA) charges you. Continue reading to learn what happens if you receive an overpayment of SSDI benefits and how an experienced New Jersey SSDI benefits lawyer at The Law Office of Sheryl Gandel Mazur can help you resolve this issue.
By definition, what is an overpayment?
Simply put, an overpayment occurs when the SSA administers a higher cash payment than the amount you were owed for that month. So if this ever happens to you, then you are responsible for immediately paying back the difference to the SSA.
An instance such as this may be more common than you initially realize. But you can avoid this by accurately reporting your earned wages to the SSA monthly. More specifically, you should report your earned wages from the previous month within the first six days of the current calendar month. Overall, accurate and timely reporting allows the SSA to confirm how much SSDI benefits you are eligible to receive each month.
What happens if I receive an overpayment of SSDI benefits?
Say, for instance, that you plan to return to work while still collecting SSDI benefits. Well, you must send a certified letter reporting your return to work to the SSA each month. Or else, you may receive an overpayment of SSDI benefits.
If an overpayment occurs, the SSA may send you a notice with a request for repayment within 30 days. What’s worse, the SSA may withhold the full amount of your SSDI benefits each month until you request a lesser withholding amount. This is otherwise known as a Request for Reconsideration.
On the other hand, say that you believe the amount of overpayment that the SSA is claiming is incorrect. In this case, you may file Form SSA-561 for an appeal. With this, you may state why you believe you have not been overpaid, among other things. It is best to file this appeal within 60 days from the date on which you receive the notice.
Lastly, if you believe that you should not have to pay back the difference, then you should file Form SSA-632, Request for Waiver of Overpayment Recovery. You must prove why the overpayment was due to no fault of your own, along with how paying back the difference might cause you an unnecessary financial hardship. You should file this request as soon as possible.
You must tackle your issue of overpayment as soon as possible. So call a skilled New Jersey SSDI benefits lawyer from The Law Offices of Sheryl Gandel Mazur today.
