Can a drunk driver who injures him/her self in a drunk driving accident receive disability?
by admin on Friday, September 3rd, 2010 | 4 Comments
I talked to a person who mentioned that he doesn’t work anymore because he cannot walk properly (has some kind of metal plates in his legs) due to an injury he sustained during a drunk driving accident. Can this person still possibly qualify for SSI disability? I didn’t think to ask, but I’d hate to think that this person is living off the taxpayers due to their own irresponsible behavior.
It can sometimes work out that way depending upon what all the dr. says is wrong with the person. It would seem that anybody who gives a damn would find anything to do that would give them an income but not all are that stand up any more. One would think there would be some desk job for them to do.
Unfortunately for SSI the "cause" of the disability doesn’t matter as long as you are not in jail. The really messed up part is that for regular disability (for those with enough work quarters and earnings to qualify), if the disability is the result of committing a felony or something that happened in the ensuing incarceration, it doesn’t count for disability. Why doesn’t this standard hold true for the welfare version (SSI) too?
Taxpayers don’t pay for the disability, that’s to start with. He paid into the Social Security system himself through the years. He has it coming. Whether or not he can collect is another matter.
I am not sure if it still applies, but if in injury that makes one disabled is due to illegal action of the party, that can disqualify them from benefits. There is a lot of leeway in this however.