Will I get reduced survivor benefits if my husband claimed Social Security early at 62?

This is a common confusion point. The good news is that as a widow/widower, you're entitled to the higher of: (1) what your husband was receiving at death OR (2) 82.5% of his full retirement age benefit. Since you're waiting until age 70, you'll actually get 100% of what he would have received at his full retirement age. His early filing reduction doesn't transfer to you as the survivor. You made a smart choice waiting until 70, as survivor benefits reach their maximum at your full retirement age (which would have been around 66-67 for you).

my condolences on your loss. when my hubby passed i got his full amount even tho he took SS early. they actually gave me choices at the SSA office. dont worry too much about it

Good for you waiting until 70! So many people dont understand that survivor benefits work differently than spousal. You get the HIGHER of what he was receiving OR 82.5% of his PIA (primary insurance amount). Your own benefit maxes out at 70 but survivor benefits max at YOUR full retirement age. You might want to check if your own benefit is actually higher BECAUSE youve waited to 70? Sometimes that ends up being more if you had good earnings.

Everyone here is giving you good information, but I want to clarify one important point. If you are claiming ONLY survivor benefits at age 70, you'll receive 100% of your husband's Primary Insurance Amount (PIA), which is what he would have received at his FRA. His early claiming reduction doesn't affect your survivor benefit. However, you should really explore whether your own retirement benefit might actually be HIGHER at age 70. Since you waited until 70, your own benefit has grown by 8% per year beyond your FRA (delayed retirement credits). Survivor benefits don't get these increases beyond your FRA. Here's what you should do: Call SSA and ask for your PIA (what you'd get at your FRA) and then calculate your age 70 amount (roughly your PIA plus 24-32% depending on your exact FRA). Then compare that to your husband's PIA (not his reduced benefit). Choose whichever is higher.

I went through this exact situation last year!!! The SSA people kept giving me different answers every time I called. So frustrating!!!! I spent WEEKS trying to get through on their 800 number and either got disconnected or was on hold for 2+ hours. FINALLY got the right answer but it took forever.

I see some confusion in previous comments, so let me give you the definitive answer based on SSA rules. As a survivor, because you're claiming at 70 (well past your FRA), you're entitled to the HIGHER of: 1. What your husband was actually receiving when he died ($1,850/month) 2. 100% of your husband's Primary Insurance Amount (his unreduced FRA benefit) Since he took benefits early at 62, his $1,850 was already reduced from his PIA. His PIA was likely somewhere around $2,300-2,500 based on typical reduction factors. So you would receive his full PIA amount, not his reduced amount. However, there's another critical consideration: Your own retirement benefit at 70 has increased by 8% per year beyond your FRA (likely around 32% total). If your earnings were reasonably strong, your age-70 benefit might actually exceed your husband's PIA. If you're having trouble reaching someone at SSA by phone, I'd recommend trying Claimyr (claimyr.com). They help connect you directly to SSA agents without the hours-long hold times. There's a helpful video demo at https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU showing how it works. This way you can get your specific benefit amounts and make an informed decision.

I thought that if the person who died took benefits early, then the survivor ALWAYS gets reduced benefits too!! That's what they told my sister after her husband died. Now I'm confused...did they give her wrong information??

this all so confusing!! i just want to add that when you go to ssa office bring EVERYTHING with you - marriage certificate, his death certificate, your ID, his social security card, birth certificates... they always want to see the original documents not copies

I just used that Claimyr service someone mentioned above last week when I was trying to resolve an issue with my RIB application. It worked really well - got through to an agent in about 15 minutes instead of the 3+ hours I spent on my previous attempts. Just wanted to confirm it's legitimate since I was skeptical at first.

ALSO!!! Don't forget you can actually claim BOTH benefits at different times! Some people don't realize you can take survivor benefits at FRA (getting 100% of deceased spouse's PIA) while letting your OWN retirement benefit grow until 70. OR if your own benefit at FRA is higher than survivor, take your retirement at FRA and switch to survivor at 70. Run the numbers both ways!