Read your book, terrifc! Question: Got a call from a 71 year old who apparently file and suspended at age 66. The thought was he'd claim a lump sum back to age 66 when he reached 70. He forgot about it and never claimed any benefit! So at just over 71, what are his options. Can he file for the lump sum back to 66? Or just back file 6 months for his age 70 MIB. Thanks

Hi. If your friend voluntarily suspended his benefits after April 29 2016, then the answer is no. If he filed for and suspended his benefits prior to April 30 2016, then I can't give you a definite answer. The Social Security operations manual seems ambiguous on that subject (https://secure.ssa.gov/apps10/poms.nsf/lnx/0202409130).

Either way, though, your friend's benefits should have been automatically reinstated when he reached age 70 if he did in fact file for and suspend his benefits. If he did so prior to April 30 2016 and if he now wants to claim a lump-sum amount for the period of time from when he filed for his benefits until age 70, he may want to submit a request and see what Social Security says. He should be aware, though, that if he's successful in claiming benefits for months prior to when he reached age 70 he'll lose the delayed retirement credits (DRC) that he earned for those months. That would cause a substantial reduction to his ongoing monthly benefit rate.

Best, Jerry