Virginia Workers Compensation & the Social Security Offset

In Virginia, you'll get workers compensation if you're unable to try to your job thanks to an injury or disease. You also could also be ready to get Social Security Disability if you're disabled. But Social Security Disability benefits are often reduced if you're receiving Virginia worker's compensation payments. There are some ways around this "bad impact" on a disabled person's benefits.

THE HISTORY OF THE OFFSET

Congress decided a few years ago that if a worker received both workers' compensation and Social Security Disability at an equivalent time this is able to be a "double payment" of advantages. Workers' compensation in Virginia pays an injured worker two-thirds (2/3) of his average weekly salary when he is out due to an injury or disease. Social Security, on the other hand, pays the disabled worker a benefit based on his/her lifetime earnings.

 Congress decided if the combination of the two benefits exceeded 80% of what was considered to be the worker's salary than the Social Security benefit should be reduced by each dollar that its payment exceeds 80% of the injured worker's salaries.

THERE IS NO OFFSET FOR RETIREMENT BENEFITS

The reduction talked about above does not apply to early retirement benefits. Thus, if the injured worker is saying Social Security retirement benefits, there would be no offset. Thus, if one is 62 or older in some circumstances it's going to be wiser to say the retirement benefits in order that one avoids the offset. This is a strategic decision that should be discussed with an attorney who is a specialist in the field.

AVOIDING THE OFFSET BY understanding A payment SETTLEMENT

An experienced attorney can avoid the offset indifferently . That is done by settling the disabled worker's workers' compensation case. But in the settlement, the money is pro-rated over the person's life expectancy. For example, if the person is 40 years old, the person may have a life expectancy of 40 more years or 2,080 weeks.

 Then, one can take the settlement of $100,000 (for example) and divide that by the 2,080 weeks. This would yield a weekly amount of only $48.07. This amount of only $48.07 per week would be too small to scale back the federal benefit.

THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR NOT USING AN EXPERIENCED LAWYER

When a settlement is submitted to the Commission in Virginia the Commission will attempt to confirm it's within the claimant's best interest. But an attorney who may be a specialist during this field should be used.

I have 35 years of practice as a Virginia Workers Compensation Lawyer. In 1999 I used to be selected in Richmond Magazine because of the Best Workers Compensation Lawyer in Central Virginia.

 I have an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau. I have lectured on both Social Security and Workers Compensation matters. This information provided herein is informational only and should not be considered to be legal advice. This information is not meant and should be considered to be the formation of an attorney-client relationship.

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