The A - Z Guide: Veterans VA Disability Benefits
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How To Write A NOD Letter
First: Consider Hiring A Lawyer!
Eventually it is more likely than not that you will receive a notice from the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) advising you of an action that you disagree with. The notice may be a denial of your application for benefits, a notice of an apportionment action against your benefits, notification of a proposal to reduce your benefit amount because you're in violation of the "fleeing felon" regulations or a host of other issues.
Any letter from the VBA that suggests that an action is about to occur that may cause you to lose benefits must be addressed quickly. The sooner you respond to such notice, the more likely it is that the outcome will be favorable to you.
Receipt of such a letter from VBA is no reason to panic. If you work quickly and thoughtfuly, you'll interrupt or reverse the process without too much fanfare.
As with all actions and communications with VBA, the written letter is a powerful tool to have at your disposal. A well crafted letter is a physical object that must be faced by the VBA. In contrast, a telephone call to the toll free number is probably not going to garner any attention at all for you and a false sense of security may make you miss a time requirement. Faxing isn't much better...fax machines are notoriously unreliable.
The letter delivered via certified mail, return receipt requested is the best way to ensure the delivery of your document.
As with all written communication to your VBA, the letter should be professional in appearence, to the point with no unnecessary verbiage and be as brief as possible while including the required language.
Here is a template that you can use;
01/01/2010
Department of Veterans Affairs
Regional Office
P.O. Box 01234-5678
Your VBA City, State
Zip
Your Name and All Relevant Numbers (SSN, C-File, etc.)
Dear Sir/Madame:
I have received your letter dated (enter the date of the VBA letter). In that letter you have advised me that (my benefits are denied, you propose to reduce my benefits, someone has asked to apportion my payments, you believe I am a fugitive felon, or any other action VBA has advised you of).
Please accept this document as my Notice of Disagreement with your (name the action or proposed action).
I request that you take no action to reduce or modify my monthly benefit amount at this time.
I request that I be allowed a personal hearing and de novo review of my file and this (proposed?) action by a Decision Review Officer.
Thank you for your kind attention to this issue. I await your notice that my personal hearing has been scheduled.
Respectfully submitted,
Joseph Sixpak
Address
Telephone Numbers
Email Address
You'll notice that there is no argument in this letter to tell VBA why you believe they've erred. This letter is only intended to halt whatever process is occurring and to buy you some time to think of how you should respond.
The VBA believes that your timely notice is very important. They don't hold themselves to any such time limits. A brief letter like that above will satisfy any 30 day rules. By getting this to VBA within 30 days of the date of the letter they sent to you, you've put the ball back into their court. It's now up to VBA to schedule that hearing.
Before the hearing, if you're able, you should present your evidence and argument that will prove why VBA has made a mistake in trying to reduce your benefit. You may mail it in, enclosing a cover letter similar to the letter above that explains your position. If you've done a good job, you may get a notice that the personal hearing isn't required and the matter may be dropped.
At the very least, you've bought time in which you may prepare a good defense, consult with an advocate and you're much more in control of how the process will affect you.