Widow’s benefits …
Marge called us in tears and let us know that she had lost her husband of some 40 years; she was confused about what to do and where to start. After expressing sorrow and condolences on hearing the news, we began a dialog of making a list of things for her to start to work on.
Since her husband, George, was already taking his Social Security benefit checks at 71 years of age, one of the first orders of business was to inform Social Security of his death. This would entail going to the local Social Security office and presenting them with (1) A marriage certificate, and, (2) an original death certificate.
Marge had been a stay-at-home mom most of their marriage and, while she worked from time to time, she had not paid into Social Security very much over the years; her Social Security monthly benefit check was only about $500 a month.
“I can’t live on $500 a month,” she cried.
We responded to her to not worry, that she would be eligible for George’s Social Security benefits, which was a much larger benefit check, at $2,900.00 per month. After giving Marge a sigh of relief, we then explained exactly what she needed to do to collect the benefits she was entitled to as a widow.
When you lose your spouse, you may be eligible for Widow/Widower financial benefits, and you need to call Social Security (1-800-772-1213) to start the process of your Spousal benefits. You must have been married at least 10 years and not remarried.
You can claim monthly benefits under the deceased spouse and defer your personal Social Security benefits until age 70 while your benefits grow at approximately 8% per year. Your Social Security benefits may grow to be worth more than your widow/widower benefits using this method.
Another option is that you can claim your benefits and Social Security will also pay you the difference between your benefits and your deceased spouse if their benefits were a larger amount. Basically, you receive the larger of the two benefit amounts for you or your spouse.
Point is, call Social Security and find out what you are eligible for and when.
Social Security will not offer advice and you must be diligent in asking specific questions. We recommend that you write these questions down before you visit your local Social Security office. Your questions should be focused on your financial benefits such as:
1) What are my current benefits and what are my options?
2) At what age can I receive my most financial benefits?
3) If I take my widow/widower benefits now how much will I receive?
4) If I take widow/widower benefits now and suspend my personal benefits until age 70, what will my benefits then be?
What you are trying to ascertain is the way in which you will receive the most financial benefits in the long run.
The Inspector General’s office recently performed an internal audit and found that Social Security regularly underpaid widow and widowers’Social Security benefits due to not informing them that they have options. This same report added that, based on the review, this group of beneficiaries was estimated to have missed out on some $132 million dollars in added benefits.
Don’t miss out on what you are due and what you and your spouse have paid into the system for all your working careers. Call or visit your local Social Security office and ask questions!