Many people become confused when they try to use a Power of Attorney to prove to Social Security they can handle the affairs of someone who is receiving this benefit. Social Security will not recognize this document. Social Security law says you can represent an individual and take care of his or her Social Security business only if a doctor or some other medical professional will sign a statement indicating the person is mentally incapable of handling his or her own Social Security affairs. The Social Security Administration will appoint you to be what they call a “representative payee”—if you complete an application form with them and get the signed statement from a physician.
Social Security does not recognize “powers of attorney” because the rules for appointing an agent under a power of attorney are much more lenient and do not necessarily involve the concept of mental incapacity. For example, a person may give someone a power of attorney while they are alive to sign checks, pay a person’s bill, list and sell a home and/or handle their banking affairs because they may have some severe physical limitations. However, this does not mean the person giving the power of attorney to an agent is “mentally incapable” of handling their own Social Security affairs.
As long as a person can handle their own legal affairs, Social Security will not allow another person to manage their benefit. After an application is filed and granted allowing a person to be a “representative payee” – Social Security Administration will be sending out a yearly document requiring the “representative payee” to confirm how much of the funds Social Security has given the “payee” have been used for the benefit of the person who receives the benefit.
Ms. MacDonald’s practice is limited to Estate Planning, Probate, Conservatorships, Elder Law and Trust Administration. Ms. MacDonald maintains her practice in the Santa Clarita Valley at 27013 Langside Avenue, Suite A, Santa Clarita, California. She can be reached at 661-251-1300.