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Never Send Unsolicited Money to the SSA

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Never Send Unsolicited Money to the SSA
Wait for the SSA to send you a letter asking for the funds to be repaid, so that they will be expecting the check. Andrey_Popov/Shutterstock
Tom Margenau
Updated:

Every once in a while, I get an email from a reader with a horror story of sorts involving sending unsolicited money to the Social Security Administration to pay back benefits that were received but were not due.

Here is my advice: Never send money to the SSA until you are asked to do so. To explain this further, let’s look at some emails I recently received.

Tom Margenau
Tom Margenau
Author
Tom Margenau worked for 32 years in a variety of positions for the Social Security Administration before retiring in 2005. He has served as the director of SSA’s public information office, the chief editor of more than 100 SSA publications, a deputy press officer and spokesman, and a speechwriter for the commissioner of Social Security. For 12 years, he also wrote Social Security columns for local newspapers, and recently published the book “Social Security: Simple and Smart.” If you have a Social Security question, contact him at [email protected]
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