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. Continue reading →