When you become disabled during your working years, you may be entitled to both Social Security disability benefits and long-term disability benefits, depending on your situation. Your employer may provide you with long-term disability benefits as part of your benefits package, and you finance your Social Security benefits through payroll taxes paid by both employees and their employers.

If you become disabled, whether the injury or illness is work-related or not, you may be able to claim long-term disability or LTD benefits. These benefits typically constitute a set percentage of your salary, and how long you will receive those benefits depends on your situation and the terms of your LTD insurance policy. In many cases, the LTD claims process is quicker than that for Social Security disability benefits, so you can begin receiving them before you even apply for Social Security. Plus, since Social Security requires you to be disabled for five months before you can draw benefits, LTD benefits can fill in that gap.

On the other hand, Social Security disability benefits are available for people who are not yet of retirement age, but you are disabled and unable to work. Payroll taxes finance these benefits, so the more you have worked and earned over your lifetime, the higher the amount of your benefits will be. Once you begin receiving these benefits, you could receive them until retirement age if you continue to qualify for them.

Some LTD insurance policies require that you apply for Social Security disability benefits after you have received LTD benefits for a specific timeframe. If you do not follow through by filing a Social Security disability claim, some LTD policies provide that you may no longer will be eligible for LTD benefits, or consent to an estimated amount of Social Security disability benefit offset.

Once you start receiving Social Security disability benefits, however, you are likely to see a direct impact on your LTD benefits. In many cases, your LTD benefits will decrease according to the amount of Social Security disability benefits that you receive. Social Security disability benefits offset your LTD benefits. Therefore, unless you are receiving more LTD benefits than Social Security disability benefits, you will no longer receive LTD benefits once you start receiving Social Security. Otherwise, you will continue receiving the difference between the LTD benefits and the Social Security disability benefits to which you are entitled.

Obtaining long-term disability coverage can be essential to protecting your future. When you initiate a claim under this coverage, however, you need to be aware of your rights and responsibilities, which may necessitate the assistance of legal counsel. At Bonnici Law Group, we offer you client-centered representation at all stages of the long-term disability benefit claims process. When you need the kind of help that only an experienced long-term disability benefits attorney can offer you, contact Bonnici Law Group at 858-261-5454 or help@bonnicilawgroup.com.