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Social Security Ovepayments

Overpayment occurs when a beneficiary receives more money than the usual amount he should have been given or paid in a month. Usually, the amount of an overpayment is the difference between the amount one receives and the amount due.

Overpayment arises when a claimant fails to report a change or if a change has been reported, the Social Security Administration did not make the corresponding adjustments to one’s benefits. For instance, a claimant fails to report that he has started working or that his child has moved out and the child has been getting child support, he may receive overpayment.

The Social Security Administration generally sends out notices to claimants who receive overpayment in their social security benefit checks. The notice of overpayment often indicates how much the overpaid amount was, and asks the claimant to send back the overpayment within 30 days.

Generally, a claimant has three options to deal with an overpayment:

• He can ask for reconsideration or review of the file, if the claimant thinks the overpaid amount is wrong or the SSA’s cited reason for overpayment is erroneous.


• A claimant may ask for a waiver if he agrees that he is overpaid and ask the SSA to waive it so that he does not have to pay it back. Or if he believes the overpayment was not his fault and he cannot afford to pay the money back, he can ask for a waiver.


• He can ask for a payment arrangement in case the overpayment was his fault and he can afford to pay it back. In this case, a claimant may ask the SSA for a payment scheme or plan.