How to tell if my Social Security survivors benefits were calculated using the Windexing method?

It's actually called the 'Windfall Elimination Provision' (WEP) or the 'Government Pension Offset' (GPO), not 'Windex method' 😊 These provisions can reduce Social Security benefits if you receive a pension from work where you didn't pay Social Security taxes - typically certain government jobs.Did your husband work for a state or local government, or was he a federal employee under the older CSRS system rather than FERS? If not, then WEP/GPO wouldn't apply to your survivors benefit calculation.The benefit amount is based on your husband's Primary Insurance Amount (PIA), your age when you apply, and whether you're receiving any other benefits. At 64, you'd get about 91.9% of his PIA since you're taking it before your Full Retirement Age.

Thank you so much for clarifying! My husband worked for a private company his whole career and paid into Social Security the whole time. I'm not receiving any other benefits right now. So it sounds like WEP/GPO wouldn't apply to me? Now I'm even more confused about why my benefit is lower than expected...

windexing is what u do to clean windows lol. i think ur neighbor got confused. ssa does complicated math tho so who knows what they did to ur money!

LOLOL I needed that laugh. I was trying to figure out how cleaning products related to Social Security! 😂😂

The benefit calculations can be really confusing! Did you use the benefit calculator on SSA.gov before applying? Those estimates can sometimes be off because they assume continuous maximum earnings until your FRA.Also, if your husband claimed his own benefits early (before his FRA), that would permanently reduce his PIA, which affects your survivors benefit amount too.One more thing - there's a family maximum limit that can come into play if there are multiple people (like children under 18) receiving benefits on your husband's record. Could that be affecting your amount?

Oh, that's interesting about him claiming early. Yes, he did take his retirement at 62 (he passed at 66). I didn't realize that would affect my survivors benefit too. We don't have any children under 18, so I don't think the family maximum is relevant. I just wish SSA would explain their calculations more clearly on the award letters!

I went through something very similar last year. The key is actually getting through to a knowledgeable SSA representative who can explain exactly how your benefit was calculated.After weeks of trying, I discovered a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helped me get through to SSA without the endless hold times. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puUOnce I got through to an actual person, they explained that my husband's early retirement filing had reduced my survivors benefit by about 12% - something no one had ever mentioned to me before. It wasn't what I wanted to hear, but at least I understood why the number was lower than expected.

Thank you for the tip! I'll check out that service because I'm tired of getting disconnected after waiting on hold forever. I really need to talk to someone who can walk me through the exact calculation they used.

I used that claimyr service too when I needed to sort out an overpayment notice. Saved me so much frustration. The SSA rep was able to explain everything and even helped me set up a payment plan.

the ssa is ALWAYS finding ways to give us less money!!!! my friend got widows benefits that were WAY LOWER than what her husband was getting when he was alive. she fought it for MONTHS and finally got the amount corrected retroactively. DON'T TRUST their calculations!!! demand an explanation!!!!

While I understand your frustration, there are legitimate reasons why a survivor's benefit might be lower than the deceased's benefit. The reduction isn't necessarily an error or the SSA trying to pay less. However, I absolutely agree that everyone should understand how their benefits are calculated and request explanations if something seems off.

Here's what may have happened in your case. Since your husband claimed at 62, his benefit was reduced to approximately 75% of what it would have been at his Full Retirement Age. When calculating survivors benefits, SSA typically uses a special rule called the

Thank you so much! This RIB-LIM explanation makes perfect sense with the numbers I'm seeing. I've never seen this clearly explained anywhere in the SSA materials they sent me. I'll definitely request that appointment to confirm this is what happened.

My own situation was similar but different - I took my retirement benefit at 62, then when my wife died, I was eligible for survivors benefits. But they wouldn't give me the full survivor amount because of something called \

It really is confusing! I'm actually doing the opposite - taking survivors benefits now and waiting to claim my own retirement. From what I understand, that's supposed to allow me to get the full amount of both at different times. This RIB-LIM thing was just never explained to me.

Based on your additional information, I'm confident what you're experiencing is the RIB-LIM rule (Retirement Insurance Benefit Limitation) that the other commenter mentioned. This isn't the WEP/GPO your neighbor referred to.The good news is your strategy of taking survivors benefits now and switching to your own retirement benefit at 70 is still a smart approach. Your own retirement benefit will continue growing with delayed retirement credits until 70, completely unaffected by your current survivors benefit.Once you reach 70, if your own benefit is higher than the survivors benefit, you'll automatically be switched to the higher amount.

Thank you for confirming! That makes me feel better about my strategy. I'll definitely keep my plan to switch at 70 since my own benefit should be higher by then with the delayed credits. Now I at least understand why the initial amount was lower than expected.