Dear Liz: I was married 37 years. I claimed Social Security at 62 because I needed the monthly income. I learned too late that if I had waited a few more years, my payment would have been much better. They did tell me that if my ex died before me, I would be entitled to have my amount increased to what he was collecting. He probably will die before me due to some serious health problems. He has since remarried to a widow who is receiving Social Security. Does she become the one who collects my ex’s monthly amount if he dies before her, which would mean she would be collecting two checks a month? And I would lose my ability to have my amount increased? I just want to be prepared for what I can expect when/if he departs before me.
Answer: When people qualify for multiple benefits from Social Security, they get the largest of the amounts available to them. So if your ex’s wife is currently receiving her own or a survivor’s benefit and your ex’s benefit is bigger, she would get this larger check as her survivor’s benefit after his death. She wouldn’t be able to collect on two husbands’ earnings records at the same time.
And what she gets doesn’t affect what you get. Since your marriage lasted at least 10 years, you should be eligible for a divorced survivor benefit of up to 100% of your ex’s benefit. Your survivor benefit would only be reduced if you started it before your own full retirement age.
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