Date of uncle’s death off by a year

A niece, serving as the executrix of her uncle’s estate, contacted the Ombudsman with a problem she was having with the estate. Her uncle passed away in March 2020. An error was made at the funeral home in reporting that he died in March 2019.

This error led the Social Security Administration to demand that more than $15,000 in social security benefits be repaid out of the estate. The executrix reported that every time she receives a demand letter from the SSA, she has responded by sending in proof of the error. This has resulted in her sending proof of the error five times, and yet the error has still not been corrected. She is expecting past benefits due to the estate from the SSA.

The Ombudsman Office contacted the Social Security Administration on the woman’s behalf to explain the problem and requesting correction. This resulted in a call to the woman from the Social Security Administration. After the telephone call, the woman contacted the Ombudsman Office to say that she felt hopeful that her problem was on the path to resolution, and that she has been singing praises for our fast and effective response.

A month later, the woman called to say that she finally received the check she had been expecting for the estate from the Social Security Administration.

Staff at the Social Security Administration also sent a communication to the Ombudsman Office that the request we had made to them on the woman’s behalf had been resolved, that the benefits due to the deceased had been paid and that all overpayment issues were resolved.