I recently discovered that the middle name on my Social Security account is incorrect - it does not match the middle name on my birth certificate , driver’s license, or passport. Both middle names start with the same letter, so on my SS card and most SSA-related papers I appear as “Marvin A. Martian”. However, on my benefits verification letter I appear as “Marvin Anthony Martian” versus the “Marvin Augustine Martian” that is on my birth certificate etc.
Background: I got my Social Security card when I opened a bank account to deposit money I had received as gifts for my confirmation. In the post-confirmation glow of holiness (long since extinguished) I put my “confirmation name” on the form instead of my legal middle name. I then promptly forgot about it for the next 55 years. I discovered the error this year as I start looking into retirement stuff, specifically applying for Medicare next year.
Question: Should I bother getting this fixed? Everything I read about online, including from the SSA website, says that the SSA doesn’t care about middle names at all. The fact that my middle initial wouldn’t change means that my 55 year old SS card reads correctly since it only has a middle initial. I am hesitant to initiate a change because I worry about setting a large bureaucracy in motion, especially if I will get locked out of applying for Medicare while the change is in process.
There are two scenarios which argue in favor of changing:
If I ever need to order a replacement SS card, will it still have just a middle initial like my original card or will it have my full middle name like Mrs. Martian’s has had since she changed her name after we married?
If I ever need to provide a Benefits Verification Letter (like I might need to do after getting Medicare but before my Medicare card arrives).
If my full middle name appears on my Medicare card.
I highly recommend straightening it out before a possible issue pops up. Dealing with SSA can be a major pain in the butt under ideal conditions. And you never know when some petty bureaucrat on a power trip will decide to make your life hell.
Just my opinion based on my personal hatred of bureaucracy.
YMMV. IME, SSA can be quite easy to deal with, ESPECIALLY under ideal conditions. If you try to take care of this now, it most likely will be done after completing a form or 2. If it DOESN’T get corrected, at least you will have documentation of your efforts to correct it.
If you DO NOT correct it until something goes haywire, you will be facing less than ideal conditions.
Make no mistake - many MANY people experience difficulties WRT SSA. Compared to the tens of millions of folk who receive perfectly fine service, the folk experiencing difficulties are a small percentage. Does not make it any less frustrating for those folk in that small percentage. But at least some of those folk conduct themselves - to be polite - unconventionally and irresponsibly, and then blame the Agency when they do not instantly get the response they desire.
Look at it the other way - why NOT correct this now? Because it hasn’t caused you any problems yet? Because of some unspecified fear of setting a large bureaucracy in motion?
I would bet that you are unlikely to experience any problems if you DON’T change it. And, if the problems occur, they will not be horrible. But my approach would be, as you are trying to button everything up preparing for retirement, why not take care of this minor factor as well?
This is the answer; start working on it now while it’s not pressing or delaying anything else. It might take some time & a couple of (scheduled) trips to your local office.
I was receiving Supplimental Security Income and Social Security Disability for quite a while. Currently, I help people fill out benefit applications. So, I feel qualified to weigh in on this.
The above answers are correct. Get it fixed as soon as you can, before it can become a problem. It may never become a problem. It may become a lengthy and huge ordeal. This is not a chance worth taking when fixing it should be easy and quick.
This is not a reason to hesitate - I didn’t work for SS but I did work for a large government agency and while I don’t know if “setting the bureaucracy” in motion or locking you out of Medicare will happen, what I am certain of is that waiting will not make it better. IOW , if trying to change it now causes problems, you will have the same problem when you apply and need to provide the birth certificate that has the correct middle name. And having the problem then is more likely to hold up benefits.
Not the same thing, but my middle name is wrong on the local election roll (it has an extra “-ley” on the end, like Bing → Bingley). I asked election officials about how to get it changed, and it sounded like a simple 500 step process. It’s never caused any problems, though; it just looks weird on the reminder postcards I receive.
I used my middle name for many years on driver’s license, etc. Then I moved to another state and was unable to get a driver’s license because the name on the license did not match the name on my SS card. I ended up having to CHANGE MY NAME in court and then get a new SS card before I could get a license. So I say get it fixed right now. Saves a lot of trouble.
Wouldn’t it be basically the same process as a post-marriage name change? I know when my wife took my name it was utterly mundane for her to get her SS info updated.
A name change because of a marriage (or marriage dissolution) is much simpler than a regular name change. You just check a box when you’re doing the paperwork.
Presumably she did that when she changed her name , not 55 years after an error. And she had proof that her name actually changed - but the OP 's name didn’t change.
For quite a few years, Social Security had my birth date wrong; the year was off by one year. This is obviously a bigger issue than having the wrong middle name but I postponed fixing it until I approached retirement age and finally realized this was going to be a problem if I didn’t do something about it. I had to go into a SS office to start the process. They had some automated system that contacted my birth state to get my info, but it didn’t work for some reason, so they had to send a letter to the state to confirm my birth date. Eventually it got straightened out, and I was pleasantly surprised with how well SS handled it. They kept me informed at each step, and let me know what other options I had (like contacting my birth state myself, although I didn’t see any reason to do that). I vote for getting the record fixed; there’s no downside in doing it, except spending a little of your time, and there are potentially a lot of downsides in not doing it.
I am planning to head over to the SSA office tomorrow. My main concern is that when Mrs. Martian filed for Medicare in September she was unable to access anything useful in her online account while her Medicare application was being processed. It took until the end of November for that to happen. I plan to file for Medicare on January 1, the beginning of my application window, because I want to make sure it is well under way before the next administration takes over. If the name correction similarly locks up the system that plan might get delayed.
The middle name has not been a problem in any situation, probably because my Social Security card just has my middle initial, which is the same for both my legal middle name and the name I used on the application. Do all card now have the full middle name?
When I applied for the card I don’t think my birth certificate was required - I didn’t have a copy of my birth certificate, I had to order a copy when I applied for a security clearance after college. When I got my driver’s license they accepted my baptismal certificate (maybe that’s what SSA used too). I vaguely remember the bank handling the application (I filled out the form, they sent it in) but I may be mis-remembering. I assume one of my parents was there. I was probably around 10 years old.
When I applied for Survivor Benefits from SSA, the woman helping me was amazing. Not only did she get those signed up, she also took care of all my Medi-Care sign ups as well. Gave me great advice and I was in and out in 20 minutes. At the height of Covid.
Could be interesting. I have my birth certificate, passport, and Real-ID driver’s license all of which show my correct middle name. The only thing on earth that shows my incorrect middle name is my social security record - as I said my SS card only shows my middle initial.
Many years ago, I notice that Social Security has abbreviated my middle name. I contacted them and asked for a card with my full name. They complied, but without ever asking me to surrender the original. Years later, I did do a legal name change, so now I have three Social Security cards. In a drawer somewhere, I think; what does one do with the card?
Anyway, the point is that they were surprisingly easy to deal with each time.
Well, that was annoying. Drove 35 minutes to the SSA office only to be told they are now appointment only (Mrs. Martian walked in a month ago). Have to go back tomorrow afternoon.