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If I could give 10 stars I would If I could give 10 stars I would Such an amazing service so needed during the times when EDD almost never picks up Claimyr gets me on the phone with EDD every time without fail faster. A much needed service without Claimyr I would have never received the payment I needed to support me during my postpartum recovery. Thank you so much Claimyr!
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Really made a difference, save me time and energy from going to a local office for making the call.
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Was a bit nervous or untrusting at first, but my calls went thru. First time the wait was a bit long but their customer chat line on their page was helpful and put me at ease that I would receive my call. Today my call dropped because of EDD and Claimyr heard my concern on the same chat and another call was made within the hour.
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An incredibly helpful service! Got me connected to a CA EDD agent without major hassle (outside of EDD's agents dropping calls – which Claimyr has free protection for). If you need to file a new claim and can't do it online, pay the $ to Claimyr to get the process started. Absolutely worth it!
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Used this service a couple times now. Before I'd call 200 times in less than a weak frustrated as can be. But using claimyr with a couple hours of waiting i was on the line with an representative or on hold. Dropped a couple times but each reconnected not long after and was mission accomplished, thanks to Claimyr.
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I tried for weeks to get thru to EDD PFL program with no luck. I gave this a try thinking it may be a scam. OMG! It worked and They got thru within an hour and my claim is going to finally get paid!! I upgraded to the $60 call. Best $60 spent!
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The SSA website is TERRIBLE!! I've been locked out 3 times this year alone. They make it so hard for seniors to access our OWN information! And then they wonder why their phone lines are jammed!!! Maybe if their website actually WORKED people wouldn't need to call so much!!! My daughter had to help me set up a new account and I STILL can't access my statements half the time.
Ikr? My mom can never get in either and she's not even that bad with computers. They should make it easier for us
This is why I just go to the local office. The people there are actually helpful in person.
One additional point regarding your question about claiming at 65 - remember that your Medicare enrollment starts at 65 regardless of your Social Security Full Retirement Age. So even if you delay Social Security benefits, you should still sign up for Medicare during your Initial Enrollment Period (which begins 3 months before your 65th birthday). Missing this window can result in permanent premium penalties. This is a common source of confusion since the Full Retirement Age for Social Security and Medicare eligibility age are different.
Oh! I completely forgot that Medicare starts at 65 regardless. Thank you for reminding me. I'll make sure to sign up for that at the right time even if I decide to wait on Social Security.
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My situation was kind of similar but without the railroad part. I filed early at 62 with a 9 year old and my wife waited until her FRA. One thing nobody mentioned is that the family maximum is pretty low when YOU file early. It limited what my kid got. Also the whole 50% thing gets confusing because it's 50% of something but the family maximum can reduce it. The SSA explanation of family maximum calculations makes my head hurt LOL!!!
THIS!!!! The family maximum is so confusing and the formula is impossible to understand. When I filed at 62 with kids, I was shocked at how the family maximum reduced what I thought they'd get. The SSA website calculator is useless for complex situations.
Based on all the discussion here, I'd recommend these steps: 1. Given the recent WEP repeal, wait a few months for updated guidance from both SSA and RRB before making any decisions about your husband filing. 2. Request a benefit verification letter from SSA that shows your PIA (Primary Insurance Amount), your current benefit amount, your son's benefit amount, and the family maximum on your record. 3. Have your husband request his Social Security Statement to see what his PIA would be. 4. With those numbers in hand, you can calculate whether it makes sense for your husband to file early just for your son's benefit. 5. Consider that your son's benefit eligibility will end when he turns 18 (or 19 if still in high school), so filing early only provides benefits for a limited time. 6. Remember that if your husband files early but continues working, his eventual benefit at FRA will be recalculated to account for months when benefits were withheld due to the Retirement Earnings Test. This approach gives you concrete numbers to work with while allowing time for the policy implications of the WEP repeal to become clearer.
I think this is the most sensible approach. I'll get the benefit verification letter from SSA and have my husband request his statement. That way we'll have the real numbers to work with. And we'll wait for more guidance on the WEP repeal implications before making any decisions. Thank you so much for this thoughtful advice!
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Just want to say sending prayers to you and your wife. This stuff is so hard to deal with on top of everything else.
Has anyone mentioned the fact that you might have choices about WHEN to take survivor benefits? Like if you have your own work record, sometimes it's better to take your own retirement at 62 and then switch to survivor benefits at FRA, or vice versa. The rules changed in 2015 but some options still exist. My financial advisor helped me figure this out and it meant about $45,000 more over my lifetime!
This is a critical point. Survivor benefits have more flexible claiming options than regular retirement benefits post-2015. You can still take one benefit type early and switch to the other later to maximize lifetime benefits. For example, if you're younger than FRA, you might take reduced survivor benefits and then switch to your own unreduced retirement benefit at 70 (when it maxes out). Or the reverse could be better depending on your respective earnings records. This can mean tens of thousands of dollars difference over a lifetime.
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Thank you all for the helpful advice! I think I'm going to wait until my FRA and have my husband wait until his FRA too before claiming. From what everyone has explained, this seems like the best way to maximize both our current benefits and protect me with a higher survivor benefit if needed in the future. Really appreciate all the insights!
Sounds like a solid plan based on what you've shared. One last suggestion - schedule an appointment with SSA about 3 months before your FRA to confirm everything. Benefit calculations can have unique factors based on your specific earnings record that might affect the final amounts.
make sure u check what happens if u take urs now and then switch to spousal later when he files. my brother in law did that and got more $ overall. its called restricted application i think?
Important clarification: Restricted applications are only available to people born before January 2, 1954. Based on the FRA mentioned (66.8), the original poster was born after that date and doesn't qualify for this strategy. This is why getting accurate information is so important - rules change and not all strategies are available to everyone.
Freya Pedersen
Yes, a copy of your marriage certificate would be helpful documentation. If you don't have it, you can usually request one from the vital records office in the county/state where you were married. Any paperwork from your previous divorce attempts might also be useful to document that you made good faith efforts to resolve the situation. When you apply, be prepared to answer questions about why you didn't complete the divorce - just be honest about the circumstances.
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Malik Davis
•I'll see if I can locate the marriage certificate and maybe find some of those old attorney bills from my divorce attempt. I appreciate all the help! This has been weighing on me for years.
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Ravi Gupta
i had my friend who works at ssa look up ur question and she said as long as u dont try to claim on his record ur totally fine. just be honest on the forms and ull get ur money no prob
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Isabella Santos
•Please don't tell people you had a friend "look up their question" at SSA. That's incredibly misleading and possibly illegal if someone actually did that. SSA employees cannot access records without proper authorization, and they definitely shouldn't be discussing cases with friends. OP, please rely on official information from SSA, not anecdotes like this.
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