The Application Process
Although it is possible to apply for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) or Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) without legal help and direction your odds are significantly increased if you enlist the help of our Social Security lawyers.
- Nationally, only 36 percent of SSI and SSDI applicants are approved the first time they apply for Social Security disability.
- Only 14 percent of those who appeal the initial denial are then granted a favorable Social Security decision.
- On the third level, following the application and appeal, 63 percent are successfully granted disability after their hearing.
Compare those numbers to Biggam, Fox & Skinner’s track record:
In 2010, we won 92% of the cases that we brought to hearing.
Our Social Security lawyers have helped Vermonters with their Social Security Disability and SSI claims for more than a decade. Give us a call for a FREE evaluation of your case. We always work on a contingency basis, which means that you pay nothing unless we win!
How to Apply for SSI and SSDI
To apply for SSI benefits either for an adult or a child, you must submit an application to your local Social Security field office.
For instruction on how to apply for SSI for an adult go to How to Apply For SSI Benefits for an Adult.
For instruction on how to apply to SSI for a child go to How to Apply For SSI Benefits for a Child.
You can now file for SSDI benefits either online or through a local office. To apply for SSDI online go to Apply for Disability Benefits.
Social Security also has field offices which can take applications over the phone or in person. In Vermont those office are in Burlington, Montpelier, and Rutland:
Burlington Social Security office:
58 Pearl Street
Burlington, VT 05401
Phone: 802-951-6753
Montpelier Social Security office:
33 School Street
Montpelier, VT 05602
Phone: 802-223-2709
Rutland Social Security office:
330 Asa Bloomer State Office
88 Merchants Row
Rutland, VT 05701
Phone: 802-747-0623
You will also need to file the Adult Disability Report for your medical and work history in conjunction with the SSDI application. Finally, fill out, sign and mail or bring the Authorization to Disclose Information to the Social Security Administration to your local Social Security Office.
About two weeks after you file, you’ll be asked to file a Function Report. At this point the Social Security Administration might ask for medical evidence to back up your claim. Very important: The medical evidence that you submit with your file needs to be persuasive and this is where most applications are turned down.
Our attorneys offer a FREE evaluation of your case. We understand all aspects of the Social Security law. We know what kind of legal obstacles that you are likely to encounter, and we know what questions to ask your doctors that are most likely to persuade Social Security that you are disabled.
