The Social Security disability process can be a difficult one to navigate. Instead of going it alone in a process where the agency routinely denies claims many people seek out someone to assist them with a disability claim. Once you have a representative assisting you with a disability claim Social Security is, according to its own rules, supposed to deal with that claimant differently than a claimant without representation as a recent emergency message from Social Security to employees reminded them of.
One of the benefits of having a representative is that a claimant can have his or her representative deal directly with Social Security so she or he does not have to. This can take away some of the stress involved with the process. Your representative can file the application for you, file appeals on your behalf, inform you of necessary paperwork that needs to be completed and remind you of important appointments Social Security has scheduled on your case. One of the greatest benefits of having a representative may be the representation at a disability hearing before an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ). Below is a list of guidelines Social Security sent out to employees regarding the rules about contacting a claimant represented in a disability claim.
Generally, when a claimant has an appointed representative, we will communicate directly with the representative and have limited contact with the claimant. Technicians must verify the authenticity of the SSA-1696. Please refer to EM-20022 for instructions and procedures on authenticating the SSA-1696 prior to contacting the representative on behalf of the claimant.
- When We Can contact the Claimant Directly
There are certain situations where we may need to contact the claimant directly even when a claimant has a representative on file.
We may contact the claimant directly if:
- the representative asks to deal directly with the claimant.
- the claimant, who is alleging blindness or a visual impairment, elects to receive notices by first class mail with a follow-up telephone call from SSA to read the notices to him or her.
- the contact relates to a possible violation of the Rules of Conduct and Standards of Responsibility for Representatives.
- there is an indication that a representative’s appointment may have ended, but the information in our records is unclear or insufficient;
- there is ambiguity about the scope of representation; or
- there are multiple representatives appointed and it is not clear who is currently appointed or who is the principal representative.
EXAMPLE: The claimant appointed two representatives at different times and the representatives do not appear to be working together. In this instance, we will contact the claimant directly to clarify the situation.
There is no requirement to have a representative in a disability case, but many people decide to get help after attempting to navigate the system on their own. There are many requirements and responsibilities related to a disability case so extra assistance can be helpful. It is important to understand that even if you have a representative assisting you with a claim the claimant should be an active participant in the claim and provide Social Security necessary information through the representative as needed.
