What are the Responsibilities of a Representative Payee
Sometimes Social Security judges award benefits but require that benefit payments go to a "representative payee." The judge may do this if the claimant is a child, is legally incompetant, suffers from mental health or medical problems that would make it difficult for the claimant to manage money or in cases where the claimant requests a payee.
Representative payees assume a great deal of responsibility. They are responsible for handing the claimant's money and for filing periodic reports with the Social Security Administration. I have seen at least one case in which the rep payee was sued by Social Security because of an overpayment – the claimant went back to work and lost eligibility for benefits but Social Security did not find out for several years.
It has also been my observation that claimants often become angry with their representative payees when the payee refuses to allocate money for an item or service that the claimant deems necessary but the payee does not. If you are thinking about serving as a representative payee I advise you to research and carefully consider the obligations of this position.
I recently received a question from a prospective payee named Celeste that touches on some of the issues faced by rep payees:
My friend just recently won her disability case, but the judge said she had to have a payee, which is me. I have a few questions that I would like for you to answer for me if you don't mind.
When we went to her appointment at the SS office to get her benefits started we were told that her disability check would be about $365 a month, plus she'd get regular Social Security for about the same amount. She lives with her brother & his wife & has for quite some time and was hoping to move out on her own. If she did move out and had to take on all the bills herself is it possible that her benefits would go up? I understand her wanting to be on her own, but my fear is that she can't survive on what she's getting right now.
Also, she's getting back money because she's been considered disabled since June 2006. She has loan agreements with some people where she lived with them in the past and social security is paying them back. I understand that, but what I don't understand is her attorney still has to get paid too (25%), but what I'm not sure of is how he'll get paid. Does SS send him a check? Am I supposed to take 25% of the "loan payment" money & pay the attorney? I'm just a little confused about the whole thing. Can you help explain it to me, please?
Here are my thoughts:
1. What happens when the claimant moves out on her own? It appears from Celeste's email that her friend has been approved for both SSDI and SSI and that her friend is receiving both. As you may know from reading this blog, SSI payments are set by statute. For 20o9 an individual can receive a maximum of $674 from SSI. SSDI is based on a claimant's earnings record. I am going to assume that the award is for $365 for SSI and around $365 for SSDI, which makes a total of $730.
SSI payments are reduced per a complicated set of rules called the "deeming" rules. Social Security assigns a "value" for room and board provided by friends or family and reduces SSI accordingly.
If this was an SSI only case and the claimant was receiving only $365 because of the deeming rules, and the claimant then moved out, the SSI could increase to reflect the loss of the room and board.
In this case, however, it appears that the SSI and SSDI together (totaling approx. $730) generate a payment that is higher than the SSI maximum benefit amount. Thus, from the limited information I am seeing here, I don't know that the claimant would receive any more in her monthly benefit if she moved out and lived on her own.
2. Loan agreements I am not sure what Celeste means when she states that "Social Security" will be repaying the claimant's former landlords. Agreements to repay can be used to reduce the offsets to SSI but Social Security does not issue checks to anyone. Also, an agreement to repay does not mean that the claimant has to repay her creditors immediately or at any particular time. This is one of those areas where the rep payee needs to be very careful because repaying old creditors may not be the best use of the claimant's money.
3. Attorney's fees – most attorneys request direct payment from Social Security and file necessary paperwork so that they will be paid directly from SSA. Celeste and the claimant should confirm this with the attorney – if there is no direct pay, Celeste should pay the attorney from the lump sum. The attorney is not entitled to 25% of on-going benefits however.
I would advise Celeste to schedule a meeting with her friend's disability lawyer to discuss these issues. Obviously my observations are intended to be general as I do not have all of the facts or paperwork in front of me.
Filed under Monthly benefits, SSI issues by 
Post your comments here. If you would like a case evaluation, please visit http://bit.ly/sshelp
Comments on What are the Responsibilities of a Representative Payee
I am payee for a mentally disabled person. I had been taking care of him for appoximently 12 months prior to becoming his payee. His previous payee kept all the money and refused to pay for his care. Out of concern and kindness I provided him with shelter, food, hygiene products, and transportation. I submitted several verbal complaints, afidavits and letters of complaint to SSA no changes were made until July, 2009. Since then I am payee and able to charge him rent plus utilities.
Our written agreement is that he is to pay his rent no later than the 5th of each month or a $2.00 fee will be accessed for each day it is late until payment is received. In short his payee still didn't pay and caused him to be late. Once I received enough money to pay the two months of late fee charges I was able to pay the rent due for May and June. Prior to these 2 months I did not charge him anything. Therefore I suspended the ongoing late fee assesment immediately. The issued disability was just enough to pay the rent. He still owes me for the late fees.
This is the problem and concern. The claiment moved out of my house on August 20, 2009. He stored his personal belongings in my garage against my wishes. I am charging him $10.00 daily for storage. I notified SSA of him leaving. I also do not want to continue trying to help him or rent to him because of crimes commtted against me by the claiment (sexual harrassment; stalking me during the night; threatening to burn the house down; verbal attacks in public; terrifying the children; lack of respect and consideration for other family members; attempting to rape me while I'm sleeping; and the list goes on.
I submitted a letter to the social security administration and tenred my resignation as payee and requested to take effect on September 5, 2009. I plan to pay some of his late fees to me and his portion of the electric bill which he has never contributed towards in the last several months. Our agreement took place in March of 2009 and a noterized written agreement of submitted to SSA April of 2009.
Please advise me as to weather or not you feel there is any issues with me paying the money towards late fees and utilities. I refuse to rent to him again. For financial reasons I currently am unable to issue an ivication notice. Since he moved out on his own I welcomed the opportunity not to let him return. This has been going off and on since June of 2008. Please advise. Thank you for your attention in this matter.
D
my husband has just received his disablitity about 6 months ago. my son is getting a check from this and has received a good size back pay also. he is 17 so ss made his father his payee which is confusing as they have not given my husband his own back pay yet as they are trying to determine if he needs a payee. Anyway my husband is constantly getting into my sons money claiming that since is comes from his disability it is also for him. i dont think this is right can you advise me. so far he has bought my son a car and 4wheeler but has put them in his own name. and has spent about 4,000.00 on things for himself.
I am the payee for my minor son who is receiving SSI from his Father's disabilty claim. We are receiving the "Family Max". Does this relinquish my son's father from paying me child support.
Thank you
I have recently won my ALJ appeal and will begin receiving
monthly SSD next month. The ALJ did not require me to have a payee.
My landlord, however, claims to have a policy requiring all residents on SSD/SSI to have a representative payee. Currently I am trying, through local tenant rights laws, to convince the municipal court to prevent my landlord from using my "no payee" status as a rationale to evict me.
Payees should know that some landlords try to use the representative payee system as a de facto receivables departmentl. If a ssd/ssi recipient approaches you and says his or her landlord requires that they have a payee,
please check with the hearing office as to whether ssa
requires the person to have a payee.
hi i am 17 i have been on disability since i was twelve i have a few questions. 1 my parents give me no money from it, nor do they allow me to do extra curricular activites with the money, archery, tae kon do art sculpting etc, is this legal of them? 2 they frequently use the money for the truck payement on a truck that is not neccasary nor running, they dont keep track of the money nor do they keep recepts. is that legal? 3 they wont let me work because it cancels the disability yet they give me no money from it, am i entitled to some money also can i turn them in or set up a confrence or court date to stop the ssi income since i am capable of working desire wirk and get no benifit from the check??? please i ask for your time soon cause i have to pay for damages and court costtts and cannot accuire work nor income fromm ssi to do so and i will be in comptemt thank you very much
My mother is my representative payee. The problem is she is more incompetent with money than I am and is a pathological liar. My diagnoses was false at the time as well. They had mistaken autism with ptsd. I was homeless for the first four years of my lovely journey into the SS world. Ever since She signed me up it has been impossible to get a job, apply for a lease at an apartment, improve my credit score and have social life. I honestly am thinking about going off the grid and becoming an ex-patriot, this whole situation has been ass backwards for me and I would rather die of starvation.
I am with First Bank in Wichita Falls, TX. We have Representative Payee account and the claimant has passed away. May the Representative Payee pay property taxes with the funds in the RPayee account. The property taxes are those for the claimant. We will look forward to hearing from you.
Thank you,
Cynthia Midgett
Vice President
First Bank
What do i do if i know some one is reciveing s.s disabilty benifits and working under the table with his parents .And using the s.s money for eleagal drugs and liquior?
@Christine Morris: You can still get child support from your ex .Contact the attorney genral. Im a single mom i know how hard it is.
I took my brother in and we got ssi for him. They gave him $675 and i am his payee he no longer is on ssi but they are paying what they owe him. He now moved out of state and we split the money in half is this illegal? I did not think it was because it is owed to him.