Common mistakes Veterans make when filing claims for disability with the Department Of Veteran Affairs.
1.
Not signing your claim.
The VA can't process a claim without you signing the claim.
Signing your claim gives the VA the green light to start processing your request.
2.
Failure of claiming a disability.
A lot of veterans state a symptom instead of a disability.
For Example: Knee pain- symptom; Knee condition is a disability.
3.
Include your full Social Security number on all forms you turn into the VA.
Your claim will be initiated and tracked by your Social Security number.
4.
Mail your applications to the correct address.
All applications for compensation or pension should go the Federal VA Office of your state.
If you mail your application to the State VA Office it could be thrown away or forwarded to the Federal Office many months later.
5.
The VA is required by law to give you 30 days to respond to all correspondence.
This is called VCAA Notice Response.
Ensure you respond within the required time frame.
If you need additional time to submit additional evidence you can elect to do so by requesting this in writing or by filling out the last page in your Duty to Assist Letter (DTA) titled VCAA Notice Response.
If you don't respond stating you need additional time they could continue processing your claim without all the evidence.
This could definitely hurt the outcome of your claim.
You could also use the VCAA Notice Response to expedite the processing of your claim.
If you don't have anything else to submit you can elect to have the VA continue processing your claim.
This could move up the processing time by 30 days.
1.
Not signing your claim.
The VA can't process a claim without you signing the claim.
Signing your claim gives the VA the green light to start processing your request.
2.
Failure of claiming a disability.
A lot of veterans state a symptom instead of a disability.
For Example: Knee pain- symptom; Knee condition is a disability.
3.
Include your full Social Security number on all forms you turn into the VA.
Your claim will be initiated and tracked by your Social Security number.
4.
Mail your applications to the correct address.
All applications for compensation or pension should go the Federal VA Office of your state.
If you mail your application to the State VA Office it could be thrown away or forwarded to the Federal Office many months later.
5.
The VA is required by law to give you 30 days to respond to all correspondence.
This is called VCAA Notice Response.
Ensure you respond within the required time frame.
If you need additional time to submit additional evidence you can elect to do so by requesting this in writing or by filling out the last page in your Duty to Assist Letter (DTA) titled VCAA Notice Response.
If you don't respond stating you need additional time they could continue processing your claim without all the evidence.
This could definitely hurt the outcome of your claim.
You could also use the VCAA Notice Response to expedite the processing of your claim.
If you don't have anything else to submit you can elect to have the VA continue processing your claim.
This could move up the processing time by 30 days.