Who would you turn to if a disability or illness kept you from working? A 2012 poll found that friends and family continued to be the leading resource for support while awaiting Social Security Disability (SSD) benefits, according to The Wall Street Journal’s Market Watch.
Because they are disabled and unable to work, more than 8.57 million people rely on SSD benefits today. The average monthly benefit is just $1,072, and the average time to be approved for benefits is more than two years.
Even if a person has six months of income built up, that rainy-day fund could easily run out if you couldn’t return to work because of a serious disability or sickness.
“Many people underestimate the financial severity of a disability,” said a personal financial planning director. “With little savings of their own, they have to rely on others for support.”
Once personal savings, friends and family, credit cards, and home equity credit get tapped out, people unable to return to work are forced to sell personal items or to raid their retirement savings–such as 401(k)s and IRAs.
Private charitable assistance for the disabled has fallen from 10 percent in 2010 down to 3 percent in 2012.
Considering all of your resources, do you think that getting legal assistance to help you with applying for SSD would be helpful in your situation?
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If you or someone you know needs help with Social Security Disability benefits, contact the disability lawyers at Newlin Disability.
