How to Reduce the Risk of the VA Denying Your Disability Benefits Claim

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) plays a crucial role in supporting America's veterans. However, navigating the system to access disability benefits can be a hurdle for some veterans. Many deserving claims are denied each year, often due to issues with the application process itself, rather than the validity of the disability. 

While a definitive figure on annual denials is elusive, the numbers are substantial. For instance, in 2023, the VA only approved around 65% of claims, leaving a significant portion—roughly one-third—denied. 

Why Does the VA Deny Veterans Benefits Claims? 

VA claim denials have two main sources: errors on the part of veterans’ benefits claimants and mistakes the VA might make.  

You have no control over whether the VA makes a mistake when processing your benefits claim. You can, however, reduce the risk of an error in your application that could lead to a processing delay or even a claim rejection.  

How a VA Claim Application Can Go Wrong  

When it comes to problems with veterans’ applications, there are three basic reasons why the VA rejects benefits claims:  

• Problems completing and filing benefits applications. 
• Problems with supporting evidence.  
• VA disagreements about the existence, nature, or extent of the claimed disability. 

Problems Completing and Filing Applications 

It will not matter if your doctor has diagnosed you with a service-connected disability and if you have plenty of supporting evidence to prove it if a technical error in your application causes the VA to reject it before considering it. 

Common errors that veterans make when filling out and filing their applications include: 

• Filling out the wrong forms. The VA has many kinds of benefit application forms, and it often updates old versions of its forms with newer ones. A mistake in form selection is not the end of your benefits application, but it can cause delays by forcing you to re-do your application if the VA rejects it for that reason.  

• Waiting too long to file a claim. VA benefits are for disability symptoms you are experiencing. If you delay filing a benefits claim until treatment has either removed your disability or reduced its severity to the point where the VA no longer considers it compensable, then you may receive only a 0 percent disability rating or an outright claim denial.  
• Not being specific enough in describing the disability. The VA uses medical diagnostic codes to compensate for specific kinds of disabilities. A claim that is too vague in describing the disability risks rejection by the VA if a claim examiner cannot determine from the application exactly what disability the veteran is making a claim for. 

Problems With Supporting Evidence 

The VA needs enough evidence from you, your treating healthcare professional, and any supporting witnesses that you have to prove not only that you have a service-connected disability but also to assign you a disability rating.  

The simple rule when it comes to how much evidence is enough is, “The more, the better.” The VA will not deny a claim that has more evidence than it needs for approval. It will likely, however, reject a claim that does not have enough supporting evidence. 

Supporting evidence comes in many forms. The most important kinds of evidence are your current medical records of treatment, related doctor’s notes, and a medical nexus letter that your treating healthcare provider writes for you. If you received treatment for your disability while you were on active-duty service, then your military service records can also be important support documentation.  

Letters from family members who witness the current effects of your disability on your daily life, supporting statements from your employer and co-workers about the impact of your disability on your job, and “buddy letters” from former comrades in the military who can help explain the origins of your disability are all valuable supplemental information the VA considers. 

VA Disagreements with the Existence, Nature, or Extent of the Disability 

Based on its review of your claim and supporting evidence, often supplemented by the results of a compensation and pension (C&P) exam, the VA will make one or possibly two decisions about your claim: whether you have a disability the VA recognizes and, if you do, how much you are entitled to in VA benefits, including monthly disability compensation. 

Depending on the circumstances, the VA rejects disability claims because of any of the following objections: 

You are not disabled  

Remember, it does not pay to delay filing a VA disability benefits claim. If your disability symptoms have subsided to the point where the VA concludes they do not affect your work or your daily activities, it could deny that you have a ratable disability.  

It is always a good idea not to do anything that could jeopardize your claim. For example, missing your C&P exam without a good reason is something that could hurt you in a close-call situation. In rarer cases, the VA may suspect a veteran of making a fraudulent claim. The former could lead to a claim denial, the latter to being charged with one or more crimes. 

You may be disabled, but there is a catch that disqualifies you from receiving benefits  

Sometimes, the VA might recognize that you have a disability, but there is something about it that still makes you ineligible to receive benefits.  

For example, it could decide that there is no connection between your disability and your military service. 

Or, the VA might conclude that your disability was a pre-existing condition that your military service did not make worse. 

In some cases, the VA can agree that you are disabled but assign you a 0 percent disability rating. While this is still good news—even a 0 percent rating qualifies you for many kinds of veterans benefits, including healthcare, mental health counseling, and other services—if your hope was to receive monthly compensation benefits, then a 0 percent rating can still feel like a hollow victory. 

What Can You Do to Increase Your Chances of a Successful VA Claim? 

As a military veteran, you know that the principle for mission success is “Don’t beat yourself up.” 

Similarly, preparing a VA benefits claim is like getting ready for deployment: you want to avoid needless mistakes in planning and preparation that can sabotage you later.  

A thoroughly prepared, complete, and mistake-free benefits claim application, reinforced by the strongest supporting documentary evidence you can muster, is the best way to maximize your chances of receiving VA approval of your claim. 

Get Affordable Legal Help for Your VA Benefits Claim 

Technically speaking, you can prepare and file your VA disability benefits application on your own. You are not required to have the help of an attorney at any point in the VA claim process, including appeals of denied claims. Nonetheless, there are good reasons why getting legal aid through a law firm that specializes in military and veterans’ law is beneficial. 

For example, just like rewiring your home without calling in an electrician could lead to unpredictable and unfortunate results, not having a lawyer who knows the intricacies of VA law and procedures could expose you to the risks of a denied claim. And you do not want to learn where the gaps in your knowledge are in the middle of the application process. 

When you have an experienced VA lawyer on your side, you can feel confident that an inadvertently unmet application requirement will not blindside you. A quality VA disability attorney will know what to look for and watch out for when helping you gather evidence and prepare the correct VA forms.  

Moreover, that law firm should stand behind its work on your behalf and shepherd your claim along the way, monitoring its progress and providing additional assistance if needed to answer questions and resolve any concerns the VA might raise. 

At Stone Rose Law, helping disabled military veterans is their core mission. Central to their veterans’ assistance work is the help they provide to veterans at all points in the VA disability benefits claim process. They are also certified by the VA to represent veterans in all 50 states.  

Whether you need help calculating your disability rating with a VA disability calculator, getting started with an initial claim, making changes to your existing VA benefits, or even if the VA denied your claim, one of Stone Rose Law’s experienced VA disability law attorneys can guide you through the laws, regulations, and procedures you must navigate through and represent you before the VA in a claim denial appeal. 

No one can guarantee successful results when you make a claim with the VA. But at Stone Rose Law, they know that by having the best legal help available, you can make sure you don’t accidentally beat yourself through an avoidable error, giving yourself the best chance possible for success.