Local office warns veterans about expensive fees charged to "help" with their disability claims
The Military Times media outlet recently issued a warning to veterans to be careful of people offering their services to help them file disability claims, with big fees attached. Under federal guidelines, a veteran using an accredited representative can’t be charged for help filing the initial claim. If they want to appeal a decision, then there are limits on how much an approved representative can charge. Unfortunately, unaccredited companies don’t face these restrictions.
According to the report published by Military Times, these companies might go by names like “medical consultants” or “coaches.” They’re businesses that advertise fee-based services to veterans, with the promise they can provide faster turnaround times on claims and higher benefit amounts compared to a veteran choosing to work with a representative ap-proved by the VA.
This is not the case. They have no way to influence the speed of a decision or the results of the decision. Very often these types of claims are so poorly written that the veteran has spent a large sum of money for nothing.
The assistant director of the Office of Service-member Affairs at the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) recently spoke about these companies. He said , “people signing away a portion of their possible benefits in advance.” The CFPB and the VA issued a joint blog post warning against these companies, in some cases, have misled veterans into paying hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Many veterans report, in addition to being charged much more than their monthly disability payment, when they work with these companies, they receive little actual assistance.
Ryan Gallucci, executive director of the Washington D.C. office of Veterans of Foreign Wars says that these are predatory companies charging enormous amounts of money to veterans to access their benefits. Gallucci also made similar comments last year on Capitol Hill in testimony about assisters who are unaccredited.
While these companies claim they can help veterans get through the process faster, the VA says there’s no statistical significance in the difference of the average number of days it takes any kind of filer to complete a claim related to ratings.
Many veteran organizations are pushing for the passage of the “Guard VA Benefits Act” ( https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/1139/text?s=2&r=8 ) . The legislation would put some controls in place for certain business practices by letting the VA secretary impose criminal penalties on companies and individuals who charge fees to help veterans file disability benefit claims without VA authorization.
The VA says it has tried to send cease and desist letters to unaccredited companies it finds predatory, but the VA only has authority to take action against accredited companies. The hope of some is that the Guard Act would give the VA actual power to deal with these bad actors.
By contrast, a Veterans Service Officer, accredited attorney or claims agent are considered trusted professionals by the VA because they’re trained and certified in the VA claims and appeals processes.
Accredited VSOs and representatives have to meet a set of requirements which include passing an exam, background check, and participating in continuing education courses. These courses are to make sure they’re always providing the most up-to-date information. A non-recognized organization or individual can provide information, but can’t be am accredited representative.
Trained professionals can help with financial support and monthly payments, education, Veteran Readiness and Employment, home loans, life insurance, pension, healthcare and burial benefits. They can help with gathering supporting documents like medical test results, file a claim or appeal on behalf of a veteran, and provide additional support like helping arrange transportation to medical appointments.
While no accredited representative or organization can charge a fee to help someone file their initial application benefits, they can charge for unusual expenses. After a decision is made about an original claim, then a VA-accredited attorney or claims agent can charge for their services. If the fee is too high, a veteran can challenge it.
Your local Veteran Service Office for Davidson County can be reached by calling 336-242-2037 or sending an email to DCVSO@davidsoncountync.gov .
A full list of accredited VSOs can be found here. https://www.va.gov/ogc/apps/accreditation/index.asp
We look forward to serving you.
Rick Johnson (USAF Retired)
Director of Veteran Services
Davidson County Government
