• Discounts and special offers
  • Subscriber-only articles and interviews
  • Breaking news and trending topics

Already a subscriber?

By signing up, you accept Moneywise's Terms of Use, Subscription Agreement, and Privacy Policy.

Not interested ?

A costly ‘human error’

Prisock said her life turned upside down when she received the letter from the SSA in May 2023. She shared the document with Fox 4 and it reads as follows:

“We reduce Social Security benefits paid to widows or widowers if they also receive a government pension based on their own work. We reduce benefits by two-thirds of the amount of the pension. Your benefit is less than two-thirds of the amount of the pension. For this reason, we cannot pay you… We paid you $87,250.80 for June 2020 through April 2023. Since we should have paid you $45,736.80 for June 2020 through April 2023, we paid you $41,514 more than you were due.”

Essentially, Prisock wasn’t eligible to claim survivor benefits from her late husband because she also received a pension through the Teacher Retirement System of Texas.

She claims she told the SSA about her state pension and that an agent called her up when she first received the overpayment notice, admitting: “I made a mistake. I’m human… it was during COVID.”

“I’m human as well — and I didn’t make the mistake,” Prisock said, in a reasonable argument for why she shouldn’t have to dig up $41,000 to cover a government agency’s error.

Prisock’s letter from the SSA said she’ll receive her monthly retirement benefit check of $1,128.20 until the agency starts to collect the overpayment — at which point, it could reduce or halt her benefits until her debt is covered.

“I depend on my Social Security to help me with my retirement… to help me with my house payment, my car payment, my everyday bills,” she said in distress.

It may take some time before it's clear how the new changes announced by the SSA will impact Prisock's case.

Invest in real estate without the headache of being a landlord

Imagine owning a portfolio of thousands of well-managed single family rentals or a collection of cutting-edge industrial warehouses. You can now gain access to a $1B portfolio of income-producing real estate assets designed to deliver long-term growth from the comforts of your couch.

The best part? You don’t have to be a millionaire and can start investing in minutes.

Learn More

The SSA claws back billions

In recent years, the SSA has clawed back billions of dollars from overpayments to senior and disabled Americans.

The new changes introduced by Martin this month will:

  • Put a 10% cap on the monthly Social Security benefit that will be withheld by default if an overpaid beneficiary doesn’t respond to the agency’s demand for repayment
  • Increase the duration of repayment plans from up to 36 months to up to 60 months and beneficiaries will only need to provide a verbal summary of their financial situation to qualify
  • Beneficiaries will no longer bear the burden of proof in determining whether they were at fault in causing the overpayment

Furthermore, the audit that found the nearly $5 million figure in overpayments advised caution must be paid when the funds are initially being distributed: “SSA must be a responsible steward of the funds entrusted to its care by minimizing the risk of making improper payments and recovering overpayments when they occur.”

However, consider the SSA ended 2023 with $23 billion of overpayments still uncollected, many more Americans are likely to receive their own dreaded notice in the mail.

If you do receive an overpayment notice from the SSA, you’re typically given at least 30 days to pay back the full amount or to submit an official appeal for a waiver or reconsideration.

Sponsored

The richest 1% use an advisor. Do you?

Wealthy people know that having money is not the same as being good with money. Advisor can help you shape your financial future and connect with expert guidance . A trusted advisor helps you make smart choices about investments, retirement savings, and tax planning. Try Advisor now.

Bethan Moorcraft is a reporter for Moneywise with experience in news editing and business reporting across international markets.

Disclaimer

The content provided on Moneywise is information to help users become financially literate. It is neither tax nor legal advice, is not intended to be relied upon as a forecast, research or investment advice, and is not a recommendation, offer or solicitation to buy or sell any securities or to adopt any investment strategy. Tax, investment and all other decisions should be made, as appropriate, only with guidance from a qualified professional. We make no representation or warranty of any kind, either express or implied, with respect to the data provided, the timeliness thereof, the results to be obtained by the use thereof or any other matter. Advertisers are not responsible for the content of this site, including any editorials or reviews that may appear on this site. For complete and current information on any advertiser product, please visit their website.