If you file a claim for Social Security disability benefits but your initial application is denied, rather than giving up or filing a new application for benefits, you almost certainly will be better served by filing a timely appeal within 60 days of the SSA’s denial of your claim. Though there are multiple reasons why taking this approach is most advantageous, perhaps the most important reason is that the SSA commonly denies benefits to many eligible claimants at the initial application stage who then go on to file an appeal and request a hearing before an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ), who eventually awards the claimant Social Security disability benefits. By failing to appeal, you are denying yourself an additional opportunity to have your claim approved at the administrative level and representation by a qualified representative, who may be able to argue effectively why the medical and other evidence of record already received by the SSA demonstrates that your impairments preclude your ability to perform substantially gainful activity and therefore are entitled to receive Social Security disability benefits.
If you file an appeal within 60 days of the SSA’s denial of your initial application and are later awarded benefits on appeal by an ALJ, the effective date of the award will remain the date you filed your initial application. However, if you did not file an appeal within 60 days and instead filed a new claim for benefits that was eventually approved, the effective date of your award will be limited to the date of your new application, which means that you will be entitled to significantly less past-due benefits than you would been entitled to had you filed an appeal of the initial denial. This is another reason why it is absolutely critical that you file a timely appeal if you receive a denial notice from the SSA denying your initial claim for benefits.
If you filed an initial application for Social Security disability benefits through Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Viner Disability Law can provide you with a free and confidential claim evaluation and, if we are able to represent you in your claim, file an appeal of your denied claim and request a hearing before an ALJ at the Office of Disability Adjudication and Review (ODAR) nearest where you live.
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