I Received Mail From Social Security, What Should I Do?

Once you have applied for Social Security disability or SSI you will begin receiving mail from the Social Security Administration.

Sometimes these letters are just confirmation letters and require no response. But, often the letter will require a response from you in order to assist Social Security in making a decision on your case.

First, I will tell you what you should not do. You should not ignore the letter, throw it in the garbage or put it in a pile of papers to get to "later on."

You should make any correspondence from Social Security your number one priority throughout the entire process. 

If you have an attorney then you should call them to let them know that you received a letter from Social Security and tell them what the content of the letter is. Often your attorney will have already received the same letter. Typically when Social Security has sent you a letter, they have also mailed the letter to your attorney. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. You cannot assume that just because you got the letter that your attorney also got it.

If you do not have an attorney then it is extremely important that you read the letter carefully. If you don't fully understand what the letter is either stating or requesting the first time, then read the letter multiple times. Often the letter will request you to respond within a certain time frame. It is very important that you adhere to these deadlines. Typically Social Security will set a time frame for responding. If you fail to respond within that time frame then they may make a decision on your case without the information that they are requesting. A standard time frame that Social Security often gives an applicant to respond is ten days.

If at any point you are confused or feel overwhelmed by Social Security's request then I suggest that you contact a lawyer with experience in assisting disabled individuals file for Social Security disability.