Among Friends

[Caffeina]

File a Request for Reconsideration & a Request for Waiver. That'll  stop any benefit withholding until they straighten it out.

[Kachina624]

---

@Mom2Dogs wrote:

@hyacinth003.....I would be calling my state representative in the morning....they should assist you in clearing this up....it is ridiculous!

---

@hyacinth003. Not state representative, no one in state government can help.  You need to call your rep in congress, either a representative or a senator.  These are the people who get action when federal agencies screw things up.

[hyacinth003]

He is going to call his former employer tomorrow and see who to send this to to fill out.

He had copies FROM THEM of what he was paid and what it was for.  I just don't understand why THEY have to fill out forms when we already provided the documents to them.  When he went to the office (far away and in a bad neighborhood), he wasn't told there was MORE he had to do.  He was told it was taken care of.  If they needed MORE, why not tell him when he was at the office.  We had NO IDEA.

Here's what they actually do.  They get figures from the IRS (from LAST YEAR), without knowing what it was for.  They presume YOU guilty of something, give you a sentence for your presumed crime, then tell you that YOU must PROVE YOUR INNOCENCE.

It's one thing to send you an outrageous bill, it's another to take money from you even if you turn out to be "not guilty."  Saying they will withhold HALF of your money could be really harmful to some people.

I find this unbelievable!

Hyacinth

[151949]

OMG - I think I would consult a SS attorney - this is too important to fuss with yourself.

[qualitygal]

It takes awhile for them to straighten things out on their end. One hand does not talk to the other there. It is frustrating.

[Hayfield]

I am sorry you're having this trouble but the wheels of the government get clogged and they move very slowly.  It seems that honest people are always having to deal with this that I don't understand how fraud even happens.  

[Caffeina]

---

@Caffeina wrote:

File a Request for Reconsideration & a Request for Waiver. That'll  stop any benefit withholding until they straighten it out.

---

@hyacinth003, your husband can also call SSA and tell them he wants to appeal. They should be able to do an input to their system that will stop the withholding until the appeal is resolved, even before he receives the appeal forms.

I'm a retired SSA claims examiner, and I'm surprised this wasn't resolved sooner without the employer having to fill out forms. Tell them 2015 is his first year of retirement, and it should be a grace year. Try speaking to a manager. I don't think your husband needs representation. JMHO. I'm basing my opinion only on what you've posted.

"Some people who retire in mid-year have already earned more than their yearly earnings limit. That is why we have a special rule that applies to earnings for one year, usually the first year of retirement.

The special rule lets us pay a full Social Security check for any whole month we consider you retired, regardless of your yearly earnings."

www.ssa.gov/planners/retire/rule.html

[hckynut]

Nm

[millieshops]

I understand why the SSA wanted money returned because all of us on SS know there are limits as to how much we can earn until we're 70.  That's made clear to begin with.

What I didn't remember, being so far along I could earn a billion and still collect, was that some income was exempt.  Nor do I know how we had to prove it was exempt.  It's undoubtedly there on the website although maybe it's so hard to find, OP and her DH didn't see it.. 

Should the SSA administration automatically take the documents OP provided.  Employers lie, too.  Somehow there needs to be serious checking.  I'm not implying there was cheating - it sounds frustratingly legitimate to me, just that there can be.  We all know there are millions and millions of our money going to liars and cheaters.  What would you do to limit it in this kind of potential theft? 

[hyacinth003]

---

@151949 wrote:

OMG - I think I would consult a SS attorney - this is too important to fuss with yourself.

---

I will stay as far away from lawyers as I possibly can.

A few years ago, my husband's family got into an inheritance issue.  Getting lawyers cost the Estate $88,000, which came OUT of their inheritance.  And let me say, NOT ONE of the lawyers nor the arbitrator was WORTH any of it.  They just take your money at $350/hour.

Getting an attorney is SUPER EXPENSIVE and should only be done as a last resort.  Also, know that YOU WILL PAY DEARLY.  I now understand lawyer jokes, and have little respect for the legal system to do the right thing.  It's all about being nice to each other and no one cares about how much money they cost you.  After $88,000, still the responsible party was not held accountable and ALL had to pay.

So, no offense to you.  I'd rather swallow nails at this point.

Hyacinth