There are some people who never get their Social Security payments, even though we all think we will get them one day. Some people pay into the system but never get anything back.
These are called “never beneficiaries,” and they include immigrants who come late, workers who don’t get paid often, people who aren’t covered by insurance, and people who die.
According to the Social Security Administration (SSA), only 3.3% of people aged 60 and up choose not to receive their Social Security benefits. This is a big enough number that we need to look at the people who choose not to receive their benefits by delaying them or never claiming them.
Not getting benefits has effects, some of which you may not have meant, and they are:
At age 70, you no longer get Delayed Social Security Retirement Credits.
People who are getting close to retirement are often told to wait to start getting their retirement benefits until they turn 70. If you are 67 years old, this will let you get 24% more in benefits than if you started getting them on the day you turned 66.
If your full retirement age is 66, this will let you get 32% more. Benefits add up at a rate of 8% per year, but this stops when you turn 70.
Once you turn 70, your benefits should start automatically. If they don’t, you should call the SSA to make sure that all of the information they have on file is right and that there aren’t any technical reasons why you shouldn’t be getting your benefits.
The next Part B premiums will be billed to you.
People who stopped getting benefits may have a problem. This can happen at any time between the full retirement age and age 70.
You will have to pay your Medicare payments out of your own savings, even if your benefits are being held up or delayed.
If you get Social Security, Medicare payments are generally taken out of your check. If there is no check, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will send you a bill for Medicare Part B premiums.
It could mean you can’t get Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits.
Before you decide to wait to get more benefits, you should carefully look at your finances. Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients may not be able to get their money back if they reject their Social Security check.
This is because SSI is meant for people who really need it, and people who really need it don’t reject checks.
So, if you depend on this money to make ends meet, talk to someone at the SSA to find out if you can keep getting the benefit or if doing so would make you ineligible.
You’ll throw away money you earned.
This is very important if you have health problems that will keep you from living a long time. If you wait to get your benefits, you might only get a few months or a couple of years of higher payouts. This might not be worth the three to seven years you would have gotten otherwise.
This would have made things better for you, and now that you’re dead, the money is in the Trust so that someone else can enjoy it.
You won’t have as much cash to play with.
It might be a good idea to file for Social Security payments even if you think the money you get from retirement is enough to cover your needs.
The SSA says that people who never claim benefits are more likely to be poor than people who are currently or will be receiving benefits. Also, getting monthly benefits gives you the chance to invest the money, which could help it grow and provide even more financial safety for you and your family.
People who could get benefits based on your record won’t be able to.
As long as your record shows that your benefits are being held up or delayed, no one else can get them except your divorced partner. Another thing the SSA says is that “any benefits you get on someone else’s record will also be suspended.”
