Can I change my teenage daughter's direct deposit account on Social Security without changing mine?

As a representative payee, you are considered the owner of the account where your daughter's benefits are deposited. The account should be set up as "[Your Name] as representative payee for [Daughter's Name]." When changing the direct deposit information, you would select that you are the owner of the account. This won't affect where your own benefits go - those are handled separately in the system. Hope that helps!

i had this exact problem last yr with my sons account. the website is super confusing!! i ended up just calling and the rep fixed it in like 5 minutes. way easier than trying to figure out their stupid website lol

I went through this same confusion when changing my grandson's account! If you're the representative payee, you ARE considered the owner of the account. Select that option and it will only change your daughter's direct deposit, not yours. The accounts are completely separate in SSA's system. One thing to remember: make sure the new account is properly titled as a representative payee account at the bank. It should show your name as rep payee for your daughter. If it's not set up correctly, you could have problems during your annual representative payee accounting.

The SSA website is THE WORST!! I tried to do something similar and got so confused I gave up. Good luck getting anyone on the phone though - I spent THREE DAYS trying to get through last month!!! 😡

It actually worked for me! I was skeptical but I was desperate to resolve my representative payee issue for my brother. The callback feature meant I didn't have to keep my phone tied up all day. When they connected me, I was talking to an actual SSA agent who fixed my problem.

Representative payee accounts can be confusing! Here's the official guidance: as the representative payee, you are considered the owner of the account even though the funds belong to your daughter. The account should be titled "[Your Name], Representative Payee for [Daughter's Name]" or similar wording depending on your bank's policies. When you select "owner" on the website, you're only changing the account for the specific beneficiary (your daughter) that you're acting as payee for. Your own benefits deposit information is completely separate in SSA's system. That said, if you're concerned about making a mistake, calling is always a safe option. Just be prepared for potentially long wait times.

My daughter turned 18 last year and we had to deal with similar issues. One thing to keep in mind - once she turns 18, the whole representative payee situation changes unless she has been determined to be incapable of managing her own benefits. Just something to prepare for in a couple years!

wait so is ur daughter getting SSI or survivor benefits? or r u getting benefits for her? its different depending on which one

Since you're dealing with survivor benefits, just to clarify: when you go to My Social Security online, you should be logged in under YOUR account (as the representative payee), then navigate to the "Direct Deposit" section. There, you'll see separate entries for beneficiaries you manage. Make sure you're selecting the entry for your daughter's benefits when making the change. This way, there's no chance of affecting your own direct deposit information.

I'm glad to see you got the clarification you needed! Just wanted to add one more tip from my experience as a representative payee - after you make the change online, you should receive a confirmation notice from SSA within a few days. Keep that for your records, especially for your annual representative payee report. Also, the first deposit to the new account usually takes 1-2 payment cycles to process, so don't worry if it doesn't show up immediately in the new account. The system will catch up!

One additional thing to watch out for - make sure the new bank account you're switching to allows representative payee accounts. Some smaller banks or credit unions have restrictions on these types of accounts. I learned this the hard way when I tried to switch my nephew's benefits to a new bank and they wouldn't accept the account setup. Had to find a different bank that specifically handles rep payee accounts. Might be worth calling the new bank first to confirm they can accommodate this before you make the change with SSA!

Just wanted to share my recent experience with this exact situation! I'm a rep payee for my disabled adult son and had to change his direct deposit last month. The key thing that helped me was understanding that in SSA's system, each beneficiary has their own separate direct deposit settings, even when you're managing multiple accounts as a representative payee. When you log into your My Social Security account, you'll see a list of all the beneficiaries you manage - just make sure you're selecting your daughter's entry before making any changes. I was paranoid about messing up my own benefits too, but the system really does keep everything separate. The whole process took about 10 minutes online once I figured out the right section to use!

I just went through this same process a few months ago with my son's SSI benefits! The confusion about "owner" vs "co-owner" had me second-guessing everything too. What really helped me was calling the SSA number early in the morning (around 8 AM) - the wait times are usually shorter then. The representative walked me through it step by step and confirmed that as the rep payee, I am indeed the "owner" for the purposes of their system. She also mentioned that if you ever feel unsure while doing it online, you can always start the process and then call to have them complete it over the phone using the information you already entered. That way you get the best of both worlds - less time on hold because they can see you've already started the process, but still get the peace of mind of having a human double-check everything before it's finalized.