Can SS survivor benefits be backdated to missed phone appointments from August/September?

Yes, you absolutely can and should request this! SSA has a rule called "protective filing date" that can apply in your situation. When you scheduled that first appointment in August, that established your intent to file. Explain this timeline clearly to the representative tomorrow and specifically ask them to use your August date as your protective filing date for your survivor benefits. Be prepared with the exact dates of your previous appointments. They should have records in their system, but it helps if you can reference them specifically. The representative can look up the appointment history to verify.

Was the August appt scheduled online or by phone??? If u dont have PROOF they might deny u. My cousin tried to claim an earlier date and SSA told her NO WAY without documentation. Did u get any emails or confirmations of the August appt???? PRINT THEM OUT NOW!!!! SSA loves to deny benefits and save money so u need to FIGHT for your rights!!!! Good luck!!!!!

In my experience, the key is talking to the right person. When I applied for my husband's survivor benefits last year, I had a similar situation with a missed appointment. First person I talked to said no way, second person looked at the records and fixed everything. Just explain calmly and clearly what happened with both appointments.

I had to reach SSA last month and was getting nowhere with the 800 number - constant busy signals and disconnections. I finally tried a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me through to a real person in under 5 minutes. They have a demo at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU that shows how it works. Might be worth considering if you need to follow up and can't get through on the regular line after tomorrow's appointment.

i think the technical term is protective filing date like someone else said. my neighbor works for ssa and says they can go back to your first contact usually but you gotta specifically ask for it. good luck!

To clarify some information here: The SSA can establish a protective filing date when you first take a positive action that shows your intent to file for benefits. In your case, scheduling that August appointment would likely qualify. However, for survivor benefits specifically, they can only be paid for a maximum of 6 months retroactively from your application filing date, regardless of when you first contacted them. So while establishing the August date as your protective filing date is important, understand there is still a 6-month maximum retroactivity limit for survivor benefits. When speaking with the representative tomorrow: 1. Clearly explain your appointment history 2. Specifically request the August date as your protective filing date 3. Provide any documentation you have of those appointments 4. Take notes during the call including the representative's name

My sister told me I need to talk to someone about SS and said I need to get certified copies of my husband's death certificate. Should I bring it to this phone appt?

good luck tomorrow hope it works out for you! when my mom died i had to deal with all this and it was such a mess, took months to get everything sorted

DONT FORGET to ask about the lump sum death payment too!!! Its only $255 but its something extra!!!! A lot of people dont know about this and SSA wont tell u!!!!

After your call tomorrow, if they don't agree to use your August date, you can request a formal determination in writing and then appeal if necessary. SSA has an established appeals process. But hopefully they'll handle it correctly tomorrow if you clearly explain the situation. Also, make sure you're prepared to provide all the necessary information for your application: your spouse's death certificate, marriage certificate, both your Social Security numbers, and your direct deposit information. Having this ready will help ensure the application gets completed this time.