Social Security survivor benefits showing 21% less than deceased spouse's statement estimate - why the discrepancy?

not an expert but my mom went through this last yr. the ssa ppl told her survivor benfit is NOT the same as what dad was getting. has to do with when they calculate it or something. really confusing!!!

There are several reasons why survivor benefits might be lower than what was shown on your husband's statement: 1. The statement shows estimates based on continued work until FRA, but if he hasn't reached FRA yet, the actual benefit would be less 2. There's something called the Widow(er)'s Limit Amount (WIL) which caps survivor benefits in certain situations 3. The Primary Insurance Amount (PIA) calculation for survivors can differ from retirement benefits 4. If your husband was receiving reduced benefits because he claimed early, that reduction affects survivor benefits I'd recommend asking SSA specifically about the WIL and how they calculated your survivor amount. The formulas are complex and depend on multiple factors including your age, his claiming age, and whether certain reductions apply.

My wife died in 2022 and I got her benefits. They were EXACTLY what she was getting when she was alive. So something doesn't add up with what they're telling you.

The confusion here stems from a common misunderstanding about survivor benefits. You're correct that a surviving spouse can receive up to 100% of what the deceased spouse was receiving, but there are important nuances: 1. If your husband hasn't claimed benefits yet and these are just estimates, the 21% difference could be due to projection assumptions 2. There's a maximum family benefit that applies to survivor situations (different from the retirement family maximum) 3. The Retirement Insurance Benefit Limit (RIB-LIM) can reduce survivor benefits in certain situations 4. If you would be claiming survivor benefits before your own FRA, there would be a reduction The statement estimates often assume continued work at current earnings until the claiming age, which might not match the actual work history used in a survivor calculation. I recommend scheduling an appointment with SSA specifically to explain the discrepancy. Request they walk through the exact calculation so you understand what's happening.

Trying to reach SSA for this kind of detailed explanation can be SO frustrating. I spent 3 weeks trying to get someone on the phone who could explain a similar calculation issue with my divorced spouse benefits. Kept getting disconnected or waiting for hours. I finally used a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an actual SSA representative in under 20 minutes. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU Once I got through, I asked specifically for someone who could explain the calculation details. Made all the difference having the right person explain the formulas they were using.

SSA ALWAYS gives inconsistent information!!! I was told three different things by three different people about my widows benefits. One said 100% of husbands benefit, one said 82%, one said depends on some limit thing. SYSTEM IS BROKEN AND NOBODY THERE KNOWS WHAT THERE DOING!!!!

my brother in law was dealing w/ this for my sister after she got a stroke. he said they had to look at something called maximum family benefit and also if she was getting any disability or something. maybe thats why ur getting different numbers?

This might be related to inflation adjustments. My husband passed in 2023, and his statement from 2019 showed a different amount than what I actually received. The SSA rep explained they adjust the PIA calculation each year with updated Average Wage Index figures. So estimates from a few years ago might be using different national wage data than current calculations.

To clarify a bit more about the RIB-LIM (Retirement Insurance Benefit Limit) that I mentioned earlier: If your husband would have received reduced benefits due to claiming before his FRA, there's a special provision that limits your survivor benefit to the larger of: 1. The reduced benefit amount he would have received 2. 82.5% of his Primary Insurance Amount (his unreduced benefit at FRA) This 82.5% figure might explain the 21% difference you're seeing (it's relatively close to a 17.5% reduction). When you speak with SSA, specifically ask if the RIB-LIM provision is being applied to your estimate. This isn't something widely understood outside of SSA technicians who work with these calculations daily.

I went through something similar when I was trying to understand my potential survivor benefits. One thing that really helped me was getting a copy of my husband's complete earnings record from SSA (Form SSA-7050-F4). When I compared that to what they were using in their calculations, I found they had missed some of his military service credits from the 1980s that should have been included. Also, make sure they're using the correct "date of death" assumption in their projections. I noticed SSA was calculating my survivor benefits assuming my husband would pass away this year, but his statement projections assumed he'd work until age 67. That difference in assumed work years can significantly impact the final benefit amount. The other thing to double-check is whether you have any of your own Social Security benefits that might be affecting the calculation. Sometimes they'll show you a "net" amount after considering spousal benefit coordination rather than the raw survivor benefit amount.