23-05-2025
Man says Social Security declared him dead, had to convince lenders otherwise
According to the federal government, John Reid III is dead.
'Not dead yet,' Reid said with a laugh.
The letters started coming in April. First, the Social Security Administration mailed him letters, cutting off his benefits.
The retired postal supervisor said he didn't get his pension or Social Security checks, that the bank returned them because he was dead.
'May the 1st, when I normally get my check from the federal government, zeroes again. So now we're at a deficit of nearly $7,000,' he said.
He said then his credit card and health insurance cut him off.
Action 9 investigator Jason Stoogenke has been investigating mistakes with -- what's called -- Social Security's 'death master file' for years. SSA collects data from various sources before declaring you dead. Sounds like an easy fix if they're wrong, but it can be hard to correct, hard to convince your lenders you're alive.
'They are terminating people's financial lives, making their bank accounts get closed,' former Social Security Commissioner Martin O'Malley said. 'They can't open up a new bank account. We've all seen what a hassle it is if our credit card or debit card gets hacked. Well, imagine that happening and then you can't open up the new account.'
He's concerned thousands of recent SSA job cuts are leading to more or these inaccurate death listings.
Reid said he made multiple trips to the Social Security office and that he's officially back from the dead, but he said he still doesn't know what the problem was.
SSA posted a news release on its website in March, saying fewer than one-third of one percent of the deaths need to be corrected. That's not much comfort for Reid.
'It's very stressful to be dead. If you're not dead, this will kill you,' he jokes. 'Anybody listening out there, John H. Reid III is alive.'
Social Security's inspector general told WSOC's sister station in Atlanta, WSB, they're launching an investigation into the bigger issue soon. It's their first major audit into this topic in several years.
If this happens to you:
If you know the problem is with Social Security, start there. It may mean having to go to an office in person.
If you're not sure 'where' the glitch came from:
Get a copy of all three credit reports. Remember: they're free.
See if you can tell if the mistake happened with your car loan, credit card, mortgage, or something else.
Go to the source.
If all else fails, you may want to talk to a lawyer.
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