Yay, They Are Still Alive!

[Colt]

I originally started my claim in August 2010. I know that it can take a while so I was trying to be patient. By Sept 2011 it had been over 8 months since I heard anything from them (not even a letter), so I called the 800 number and put in an inquiry just to make sure I was still there. I hadn't heard anything in a month (even though they said 5 days) and figured they would eventually get to me and I chalked it up to well that's the VA. I received a response today that said:

"Thank you for your inquiry to the Department of Veteran Affairs. The Rating Decision has been completed as of 10/12/2011. A Notification letter will be mailed in the near future to inform you of the rating decision and when to expect your first payment.

The next step after a decision has been made is the Authorization phase. Currently most authorizations are processed within four to six months, but can take longer in complex claims. We apologize for the delay. We can assure you that we are diligently working on your claim and will reply to you in the near future upon completion."

Four to six months? Sheesh. BUT, I'm glad I finally heard something from them! I'm just going to cont. trying to get my records in for the past year, and cont with my appts so that if and when I need to NOD, CUE, etc., I'll have what I need to do that.

[SP4RVN1971]

Colt , Time is so slow when we need help. Hang in there, Your almost there!

[Colt]

Thanks SP4. It's shocking how fast it can be for some though. My co-worker (retired Aug 2010) but he didn't apply for Benefits until June 2011. He kept putting it off and was slowly gathering his information. He got everything back in about 4 months (end of Sept 2011) and his payment starts next month. I'm happy for him no doubt, but at the same time, I'm like WTF to the VA?

*Edit* You know, I just realized that from my last C&P exam (Oct 7th 2010), it's been just a little over a year, since anything has occurred.

Edited October 13, 2011 by Colt

[carlie]

"Thank you for your inquiry to the Department of Veteran Affairs. The Rating Decision has been completed as of 10/12/2011. A Notification letter will be mailed in the near future to inform you of the rating decision and when to expect your first payment.

From reading this it appears that at least something has been granted :-)

[Colt]

That's what I was hoping but I'm trying not to put too much stock in it considering everything I've read here. I'll let you know when I get the results and then go from there.

Edited October 14, 2011 by Colt

[Colt]

I hadn't heard anything from them and one of my friends called his source in the VA to see if he could check it's status. Well as it turns out they missed a contention which was noted by the authorizer and sent back to the rater to complete. I'm hoping I'll hear something in another 2 weeks or so.

[navydoc2]

You could call the 800# back and ask what your current rating is. Its worked for me once. Good luck.

/doc