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Issue Spotting in Rep Payee Relationships

by | Aug 27, 2019 | Rep Payee Review Program

For those who may be unfamiliar, a representative payee, or “payee”, is an individual or an organization who manages the Social Security benefits of a person who SSA has determined unable to manage, or direct the management, of their own benefits[1].

You may be wondering how and when SSA decides to appoint a payee. It depends on the situation, but SSA policy presumes that adults are capable of managing their own benefits. However, if there is evidence that an individual may need assistance in managing their finances, SSA will make a “capability determination” to decide if that person needs a payee[2].

SSA may assign a payee for a variety of reasons, but some common examples include if the person receiving benefits has a state-appointed guardian or conservator, or if there is medical evidence that the person cannot manage their own finances[3]. The entity that SSA chooses to serve as an individual’s payee is determined by an order of “payee preference”, which you can find here. It’s also important to know, that a person can apply to become their own payee at any time.

As of 2017, there are 8.1 million people with payees and 5.8 million payees in America[4] – that’s a lot of payees for SSA to keep track of!

In August 2018, Disability Rights Maine started a contract to conduct reviews of payees on behalf of SSA full-time. You can learn more about our Rep Payee Review Program here. The reviews are intended to educate payees, increase oversight of payees, and collect beneficiary reports of payee performance, among other responsibilities.

Unfortunately, payee abuse and exploitation is not uncommon. Here are some questions that are helpful in identifying potential payee issues or misuse:

  • Does the person with a payee receive personal spending money? How much personal spending money does the person receive?
    1. If the answer is no, or if the person is receiving below $30 per month, then the payee is not following SSA guidelines. You may wish to contact SSA or DRM* to report the situation.
  • Does the person with a payee know how to get in touch with the payee?
    1. If the answer is no, you may wish to contact SSA or DRM* to report the situation.
  • Does the payee pay the person’s bills on time?
    1. If the answer is no, you may wish to contact SSA or DRM* to report the situation.
  • Does the person with a payee have unmet needs?
    1. If the answer is yes, you may wish to contact SSA or DRM* to report the situation.
  • Does the payee charge a fee?
    1. In some cases, with approval from SSA, organizational payees may charge a monthly fee for service. The monthly fee is the lesser of 10 percent of the beneficiary’s monthly benefit, or $43 per month, in 2019.
    2. Individual payees, such as family members, are not permitted to charge a fee for payee services.
    3. If you suspect that a payee may be charging a fee without SSA permission, you may wish to contact SSA or DRM* to report the situation.
  • Do you suspect that the payee is using the person’s money for something that is not in the person’s best interest?
    1. If the answer is yes, you may wish to contact SSA or DRM* to report the situation.

Remember, a payee is appointed to help an individual manage their money. The money does not belong to the payee. Thanks for your interest in learning more about payees!

*Please keep in mind that DRM will seek the permission of the individual who is served by the payee in order to report the issue to SSA.

[1] https://www.ssa.gov/payee/faqrep.htm

[2] https://secure.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0200502001

[3] https://secure.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0200502020

[4] https://drme.org/assets/uncategorized/RP-Program-Handout-01.17.19.pdf