Whew! Your Social Security Disability claim has finally been approved, and you’re feeling a sense of relief that a monthly benefit will now be paid to you. The questions are over, right?
Unfortunately, not. The Social Security Administration must now determine how much your monthly benefit will be. Your benefit may be reduced for a variety of reasons. One of the most common (and more confusing) offsets is created by your Workers’ Compensation benefits.
Here’s a breakdown of what we mean:
How to Figure the Reduction
Your monthly Social Security Disability benefits are added together with your Workers’ Compensation benefits. If the total amount of these benefits exceeds 80% of your average current earnings, the excess amount is deducted from your Social Security Disability benefit. Your average current earnings are calculated based off your earnings prior to becoming disabled.
Ask Questions
Workers’ Compensation offsetcan be incredibly confusing. We understand your frustration. It’s important to ask questions and be informed of any reduction in your benefit to ensure that it’s accurate.
It’s also important to inform the Social Security Administration immediately of any change to your Workers’ Compensation benefit. That would include a change to your monthly benefit and any settlement associated with your Workers’ Compensation claim. These changes will result in an increase or reduction of your Social Security Disability benefit. Not informing the Social Security Administration of an increase in your Workers’ Compensation benefit could result in a dreaded overpayment situation. (Please search our blog for other posts that explain overpayment in greater detail.)
This blog post only touches on the tip of the iceberg when dealing with offsets and your Social Security Disability benefit. It is always a good idea to contact an Ohio Social Security Disability Lawyers who can walk you through this process, and answer the questions that you will inevitably have.