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How to Verify Your Social Security Benefits
By Jim Miller
The
best way to keep an eye on your Social Security benefits and avoid
any possible mistakes is to carefully review your Social Security
statement, which you can now do online.
Just go to ssa.gov/mystatement and answer a few questions to verify your identity,
and then print your statement out on paper. If you’re age 60 or older and
not yet receiving benefits, your statement will actually be mailed to you about
three months before your birthday.
Your Social Security statement lists your earnings record for each year of employment,
and estimates the benefits you and your family may receive as a result of those
earnings.
Once you get your statement in front of you, take some time to verify its accuracy
by comparing the earnings listed on your statement with your own tax records
or W-2 statements. And if you spot a discrepancy, follow these steps:
• Call your nearest Social Security office (see ssa.gov/locator or call
800-772-1213 to get the number) to report the error. Some corrections can be
made over the phone, or you may need to schedule an appointment and go in with
copies of your W-2 forms or tax returns to prove the mistake, or you can mail
it in.
• If you suspect a discrepancy but don’t have backup records, the
Social Security Administration (SSA) may be able to use your employment information
to search its records and correct mistakes. If the SSA can’t locate your
records, you’ll need to contact the employer to obtain a copy of your W-2
for the year in question.
• Once your earnings record is corrected, SSA will send you a confirming
letter. If you don’t receive the confirmation within three months, contact
them again, and double-check the correction by making sure it appears on your
Social Security statement.
• If corrections aren’t made on your statement start an appeals process
(see ssa.gov/pubs/10041.html).
Other Mistakes
Social Security earnings miscalculations can also happen if there’s a mistake
in your current mailing address that the IRS has on file for you. Check your
federal tax returns for this possible error, especially if you’ve moved
recently.
To correct your address, contact the IRS at 800-829-3676 and ask them to mail
you the “Change of Address” form 8822, or print it off at irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f8822.pdf,
fill it out and mail it back to the address on the form.
Other factors that can cause mistakes are if your name or date of birth in the
SSA records isn’t the same as it appears in the IRS files. Name mistakes
most often occur for women who have changed their name following a marriage or
divorce. So double check your Social Security statement for these possible mishaps,
and if you notice an error call the 800-772-1213 and ask for Form SS-5, “Application
for a Social Security Card,” and submit it with the correct information.
The form can also be downloaded at ssa.gov/online/ss-5.pdf.
Calculation Errors
Even when all the earnings data is correct, SSA occasionally errors in calculating
benefits. If you think your benefits have been miscalculated (see ssa.gov/pubs/10070.html),
point it out to your local Social Security office and ask them to recalculate.
If they do find an error, make sure you receive a confirming letter and that
the correction appears on your statement. If you’re already receiving benefits,
the SSA will reimburse you for the amount of the error.
This page and its contents ©2012
Metropolitan News Company, Inc.
