Why Long Social Security Phone Wait Times Still Matter for Blind and Low-Vision Beneficiaries

By Penny Forward
Based on reporting by Alessandra Malito, MarketWatch

The Social Security Administration (SSA) says its phone service is getting better. According to a recent report from the SSA’s Office of Inspector General, average phone wait times have improved compared to earlier this year.

For many people who are blind or have low vision and rely on Social Security benefits now — or expect to in the future — that headline may sound encouraging. But it doesn’t tell the full story.

Long Wait Times Are Still a Real Barrier

Even with reported improvements, many callers still experience long delays, especially when requesting a callback. According to the Inspector General’s report, the average callback wait time in September was just over one hour, and more than 25 million calls in fiscal year 2025 ended without service due to disconnections, missed callbacks, or busy signals.

For people who are blind or have low vision, these delays can be more than an inconvenience. They can be discouraging, exhausting, and disruptive, particularly when dealing with urgent issues like benefits changes, overpayments, or questions about working while receiving SSDI or SSI.

Online Services Don’t Cover Everything

SSA continues to expand its online services, and for some tasks, those tools are helpful. However, many of the most common and complex issues faced by blind and low-vision beneficiaries cannot be fully resolved online.

These include questions about:

• Work incentives
• Earnings reporting
• Overpayments
• Trial Work Periods
• Continuing Disability Reviews
• Benefits Planning Queries (BPQY)

For these situations, speaking with a knowledgeable SSA representative is often still the most effective — and sometimes the only — option.

Why Timing Your Call Still Matters

Based on years of experience working with blind and low-vision Social Security beneficiaries, we continue to find that calling early in the morning and later in the week often results in shorter wait times and better outcomes.

While this strategy doesn’t eliminate delays entirely, it can make the process more manageable — especially when dealing with time-sensitive or stressful issues.

Metrics vs. Real Experiences

The Inspector General confirmed that SSA’s reported metrics are accurate. However, advocates point out that averages don’t reflect individual experiences. A seven-minute “average speed of answer” does not account for the time someone waits for a callback — or whether that callback comes at all.

For people navigating disability benefits, the real-world experience matters just as much as published statistics.

We Want to Hear From You

At Penny Forward, we believe that stories from the community are just as important as government reports.

If you’ve had a recent experience calling Social Security — good, bad, or somewhere in between — we want to hear from you. Your stories help us better understand what blind and low-vision beneficiaries are actually encountering, and they help us give more accurate guidance to our members.

You can share your experience by emailing us at pennyforward@pennyforward.com.

Together, we can make sure the real experiences of our community are part of the conversation.