Some disabled workers are fortunate to have short term or long term disability policies, or both, as an employer-provided benefit provided by their last employer. Others have purchased such private disability insurance on their own for various reasons. These policies can help disabled workers as they work with a disability attorney to file for Social Security. Unfortunately, not many are familiar with the details of the rules governing these policies.

A Disability Attorney’s Guide to Private Policies

Some short and long term private disability insurance policies require you to apply for Social Security disability if you receive benefits under their plan. If this is the case, it is certainly one more reason to file a contact a disability attorney and file a Social Security claim.

In many cases, should you win, the private insurance company expects you to repay them some or all of the benefits paid to you by the private insurance company while you waited for your disability case to result in an award. If this is the case, you should be careful not to spend your back pay benefits following an award without settling any obligations you have with such a private insurance company.

Should one of RGG Law’s disability attorney help you win disability benefits through Social Security, most private disability insurance companies require you to notify them of this fact. In some instances, they may still pay you some amount of money even though you are receiving benefits from Social Security. Often this is the difference between what you receive from Social Security and a higher amount you may be due under the policy. Rarely are you allowed to receive the full private benefit and full benefits from Social Security at the same time.

Of course, each policy is different. The rules you must follow are contained in your individual policy. You should consult your human resources department at your former employer for more information or to find out how to get a copy of your private disability policy rules.

Short term disability benefits and even long term disability benefits can be a vital bridge that helps your family survive as you and your disability attorney fight to win your Social Security disability benefits. As much of a blessing as this can be, it is vitally important to know, understand and follow the rules for your private disability insurance plan.