Dear Liz: I am 64. I recently reviewed my Social Security summary online and saw that it does not have an accurate listing of my income, so the projections of my benefits aren’t accurate either. How do I correct these errors?
Answer: There are a number of ways the Social Security database could be wrong. An employer could have reported your earnings incorrectly or not at all. Or your earnings could have been reported using the wrong name or an incorrect Social Security number. If you married or divorced and changed your name, but failed to notify Social Security, that also could lead to errors in your record.
You can call the Social Security help line at (800) 772-1213 to start the process of correcting your records. It would be best if you have proof of your earnings, such as W-2 forms, tax returns or pay stubs from the years in question. If you don’t have such proof, the Social Security Administration asks that you provide as much information as possible about where you worked, the name of your employer(s), the dates you worked and how much you earned.
Your experience shows why it’s important to periodically review your Social Security records to make sure they’re accurate. This year the Social Security Administration will resume sending paper statements to certain workers (those aged 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55 and 60), but in the meantime you can check your records online by signing up at http://www.ssa.gov/mystatement/.
Not to pick, Liz, but you didn’t really address the question. How does a person correct information on their SS statement?
A few paragraphs were missing from the original post. They’ve been restored.