Don’t get your hopes up about a $1,800 payment coming your way from the Social Security Administration. Once you get past the misleading and inaccurate headlines, the websites get what they want: People view their website.
Disabled people in Northern California and throughout the country rely on Harvey Sackett of Sackett and Associates for trusted, dependable advice and representation in Social Security disability claims. It makes sense to rely upon them now for the truth about extra payments, so here is what’s really happening.
What’s Behind The Headlines?
It becomes a hodgepodge of misinformation if you go beyond the headlines and read about who gets $1,800 Social Security payments. For example, one site justifies its headline about a $1,800 payment to people receiving Social Security benefits by explaining that the average monthly benefit payment is $1,800, which is incorrect.
If you have a medically determinable physical or mental impairment preventing you from doing substantial gainful activity, you meet the Social Security eligibility requirement for SSDI benefits. The medical condition that prevents you from working must last or be expected to last for at least 12 months or be expected to result in death.
The fact that you have a disability does not automatically qualify you for SSDI benefits. You must have worked long enough at jobs where Social Security taxes were paid on the earnings to be eligible for Social Security retirement or disability benefits.
If you qualify for retirement or SSDI benefits, the Social Security payment amount you receive each month is based on your average lifetime earnings. The maximum benefit amount a retired or disabled worker may receive in 2024 is $3,822, but it changes yearly. The average benefit is only $1,542 in 2024, not $1,800, as represented by the websites seeking to justify their misleading headlines about a $1,800 windfall for Social Security recipients.
Sure, some people may meet the Social Security benefits criteria for a $1,800 monthly SSDI or retirement payment based on their lifetime earnings, but it is not what was promised by the headlines that got you to click on the website. A headline proclaiming a $1,800 Social Security payment makes a reader believe an extra payment is coming to retirees and disabled workers when the Social Security Administration has made no such announcement.
Cost Of Living Adjustments
Another bit of misinformation awaiting when you go to sites promising a $1,800 Social Security payment using cost-of-living adjustments to justify the headline. Federal benefits, including SSDI and retirement, are subject to annual cost-of-living adjustments based on the inflation rate.
The Social Security Administration announced a 2.5% COLA adjustment in 2025 for people receiving SSDI, retirement, and Supplemental Security Income payments. You will automatically receive a COLA increase if you currently receive any of those payments. There is nothing you can do to get the 2.5% increase, which may contradict what scammers may suggest.
If you are contacted by anyone offering to help you apply for the COLA increase, they probably want to get your Social Security number and other confidential information. Do not give them any information. Instead, report them to the Social Security Administration.
Look For Official Announcements About Benefit Changes
The Social Security Administration makes public announcements about anything affecting the SSI, SSDI, and retirement payments that people receive. The announcements typically happen well in advance, so you should know about benefit changes or additional payments before seeing them as headlines on websites.
Of course, it’s possible to miss an official announcement. If you see or hear about a payment or something affecting your Social Security benefits, check the source of the information to determine if it is reliable.
Reputable news outlets and government websites are examples of reliable sources of information. However, information coming from a news outlet that you never heard of before, someone calling you on the phone, or an email from an unknown source should not be acted upon without first checking with the Social Security Administration or Sackett Law to verify the accuracy of the information.
Trust The Disability Law Professionals
Earlier this year, a fake news report about a $600 increase in Social Security benefit payments generated almost half a million calls to the Social Security Administration in a single day until the SSA could release a public statement denying the false report. Another option for information and representation about SSDI or SSI claims and benefits is the disability team at Sackett and Associates.
Learn why thousands of people throughout Northern California and nationwide put their trust in Sackett and Associates for reliable advice and skilled representation. If you need help with an application or need to appeal the denial of a claim or termination of benefits, contact us today for a free consultation and evaluation. Find out what Sackett Law can do for you.
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