Decision date keeps bouncing around

[Cobra4v]

I've been in preparation for decision for over a month. My decision date keeps bouncing around. 2 weeks ago my claim was to completed on the 27th of June. Since about last week my claim was scheduled to be completed the 22nd of June (tomorrow). I logged on today to check the status and it still reflects preparation for decision. Their is also an error message that said "dependency claim processing is undergoing maintenance and claim updating may take over a week". 

Contacted ebenefits customer support and they said all claims will be effected. They couldn't advise if this would be through the regional side of things as well. They gave me the regional office number to inquire.

Called them, spoke with a rep and explained my question thoroughly. As a reply I got, " your claim is in the decision making process, if any other information is needed it will go back to the gathering of evidence process. It's estimated your claim will be completed on the 22nd, however, this is just an estimate and depends on the VA's pending work load".

funny how I remembered the response to a T isn't it? I'm sure we're all no stranger to this response when we call up.

Anyway. Has anyone ever been up to the last day of their estimated time of completion, only to get pushed back longer? And has anyone ever made it to the last day of decision making while still in the Preparation for Decision process and needed up being completed as scheduled?

Im really hoping things go smoothly. 

 

[pepperD]

Cobra4v,

As many have stated, that's the norm for eBenefits.  RO had my claim scheduled for decision for 5 months. After the Feb 4th date passed, about 2 weeks later I inquired through IRIS they changed the date to April 15th.  That date came and went, then the date changed to May 24th one day. When that date was passed, I inquired through IRIS, never got a return email or call, but guess what, the scheduled completion date changed again to Jun 13th.  Five days later another change, to expected completion date June 11th - June 13th.  This was odd, because the 11-12th was a weekend.  Then for some reason on June 5th, the date changed to June 11-12.  As usual those dates came and went, but finally on June 15th, my claim showed as complete in eBenefits.  Took another week to get the envelope.  In all, the dates changed so much I could keep up with the reasoning.  The envelope arrived but all open claims were not completed as expected. 

So try not to get caught up in the back and fourth, but do contact them when they miss a date, just to let the RO know you are engaged, and know they're kicking the can down the road.  Best wishes.

PepperD

[Cobra4v]

Thanks for the info. I checked my claim again and nothing changed. It's still showing the estimated completion date as the 22nd. I called the RO and they don't have an estimated completion date for me anymore. 

[Cobra4v]

Update:

checked my claim this morning at 10am and it was still in preparation for decision. No estimated completion date change. Just checked it again and my claim moved back to review of evidence. Estimated completion 7/19 8/4. I didn't submit anymore evidence. So not sure why they changed the phase to that. I'm close to 100% so I'm sure they're searching really hard for a way to discredit my claim for an increase. 

Edited July 5, 2016 by Cobra4v

[CoolHandDevil505]

1. The dates are algorithm-driven. 

2. The reason the answer always sounds the same is because it's a script. Every call center on the planet has scripts to ensure consistency. This is nothing special on the VA's part. 

-CHD505