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Vso's

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What is the benefit of a VSO handling your claim and what good does it do If you send the paperwork to VSO's after submitting it yourself to VA/BVA. What do you need to do to rescind a POA with a VSO. What do they really do for you.

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Hello all, My experience with VSO's is like most of you here at hadit. I first started with the DAV , which is suppose to be the largest. The rep that helped me is excellant and even a supervisor for the reps here in my area. The problem I have is he lives 3 hours away and it is almost impossible to see him without an appointment. The DAV reps where I live are overworked and really do not have a grasp on each veterans situation because of the multitudes of veterans coming and going. I could never get a phone call returned and if I wanted to see the DAV rep here , I had to be at the front door no later than 6:30 a.m. with my chair and coffee and my bible and spend some good quality time until they opened at 8:00a.m. Sometimes I was not even first in line but usually at least 2 or 3 so I would get in sometime that morning. Thats how overworked they are. I finally got so fed up with them and have changed VSO and organizations. It takes time to find a good one. I would also point out that the Veteran should be responsible if possible to research , gather , and present to the VA . So really the VSO can help , but it really means the Veteran is really responsible for his claim. ADVICE from the VSO and knowledge of the 38 CFR's are what the veteran is seeking. When my new VSO and I get together on the phone or in person( he lives 3.5 hrs from me) we glean our thoughts and the knowledge we both have and decide on our battle plan. Trying to learn from others here at hadit and learning the M21 , and the 38 CFR's are important. Reviewing the past BVA cases are critical in and the Veteran is going to have to have some type of working familiarity of the VA system of propelling a claim forward. Unfortunately not all veterans have computers or even more ......the time to devote to fight with the VA. The VA has nothing but time and they know how to waste it and the bigger the logjam of claims the better they like it. More government = less efficiency. I have heard it stated here alot.... no one does a better job with your claim than the veteran him or herself. Hope this makes sense and sorry to ramble on. A good VSO is priceless but hard to find. God Bless, C.C.

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