OVER PAYMENTS MUST BE RETURNED TO SOCIAL SECURITY

A lot of people get into trouble with Social Security by taking benefits they are not entitled to.  This can go on for several years before Social Security catches on.  Then, the government demands that you pay the money back.  Probably, the money has been spent.  You just don't have it to pay back.  This is a serious problem.

How do people get themselves into this fix?  By taking money that they are not entitled to.

It usually happens this way.  An individual gets approved for disability and receives an SSDI check each month.  After a couple of years, he feels better and decides he can go back to work.  He does so but doesn't notify Social Security that he is working.  So, Social Security keeps sending the monthly disability checks, which the beneficiary is no longer entitled to.  But the checks keep getting cashed, creating a huge over-payment.  

This may go on for up to two or three years.  It appears that everything is fine because nobody has screamed about it.  

However, Social Security has multiple ways of knowing when people get checks they are not entitled to.  Eventually, they will find out.  They always do.  Then, they will demand their money back.

Of course, the money has already been spent.  That doesn't matter.  Social Security wants their money back, no excuses.

I get five or six calls a month from individuals in this situation.  "I've spent the money, I don't have it any more, and now they want it back.  Can you get me out of this?"

The short answer is, "No, I can't."  If you take money you are not entitled to, you will have to pay it back.

I do realize that earning a paycheck and getting a disability check too is tempting.  But it is also illegal.  

Here is my recommendation to anyone receiving a benefit from Social Security:

Realize your reporting responsibilities.  If you go back to work, either full-time or part-time, immediately notify Social Security in writing.  Telephone calls are nearly impossible to prove and never make a good record.   If Social Security doesn't respond, don't just assume that cashing their checks is OK.  Keep contacting them until you get the right information.  Ultimately, cashing checks that you're not entitled to cash only gets you into trouble.  There is never an acceptable excuse and there are no loopholes.  When in doubt, don't cash the check!

Fighting fraud is Job 1 at Social Security these days.  If outright dishonesty or misrepresentation is involved, you may be subject to arrest and criminal prosecution--in addition to paying back the money you took. It isn't worth it to put yourself in that position.  If you go back to work, report it.  If they send you a check anyway, return it.  

There are a very limited number of situations where a person might be entitled to keep getting a check after returning to work. An example would be a person participating in the Ticket to Work program.  But this is a formal program where a person works with the permission of Social Security and there are rules and limits.