If you have lost your social security card and credit cards all at once, you might have instantly felt your stomach drop. Relax, as there is a simple resolve, and you will take care of the problem quite easily these days. The first thing you want to do is of course report those credit cards lost or stolen, and you might even be able to do that using an app on your phone.
If not, you’re going to need to sign into your online account on the web or make some phone calls. First, let’s address the fact that if you lost all of these cards at once, your credit cards and social security card, it means you were likely carrying your SS card in your wallet. If that’s the case, you need to know that it’s never a good idea to carry your SS card in your wallet.
Since you’re not going to need to show it for the most part anyway, it should be put away somewhere safe, not in your wallet. Did you also lose your license? If so, you’re going to need to take the necessary steps to get it back, too, along with your social security card. First, however, let’s continue to address what you need to do about your credit cards.
The credit card companies will get you replacements sent out right away. You will have to think about any automatic payments that are coming out and talk over business matters with the credit card company. They will make things easy for you, and you will be able to get everything situated again once your new cards show up in the mail.
Do be sure to check your credit card statements to ensure that everything ends up as it should. You will have canceled use of your cards and will have notified the company, so you should be good to go. You just always want to be diligent when it comes to record keeping and vigilant when it comes to statements, regardless.
Now, as for your replacement social security card, the process is so very simple. You might have assumed you have to make a trip to the SSA office, but you might not have to do that. First, you’re going to want to visit the SSA website, and you’re looking for the replacement card application guidelines. You want to check and see if your state is on the list.
If you discover that your state is on the list, then you are likely going to be able to get your replacement card without a trip to the SSA office. Isn’t it nice that you might be able to skip that trip and just fill out the online application? It sure does make the process much easier. There are a total of 20 states on the eligibility list, 18 whose citizens can verify identity online using a drivers license OR state ID. Citizens from the other two states must use a drivers license.
At this point, you are going to want to click on the replacement card application so that you can start filling out that app. But what you’re going to have to do first is register for an account. After you have signed up for your My Social Security Account, a confirmation email will be sent to you. Not only is the process quick, but confirmation is instant.
In other words, there is no waiting, and you will be able to instantly move forward with filling out the replacement card application. It should also be mentioned that this entire process is free, and you will also be gaining access to your social security benefits statements online. You will have digital access to all kinds of forms, too, and pretty much everything related to any business you might have with the SSA.
While you don’t have to show your social security card much these days, you still want that replacement. It comes in handy for sure, and you want it for identification purposes. It’s much easier to get a replacement card these days, as long as your home state is on the list. If it’s not on the list, then you will want to take your ID and birth certificate up to the SSA office and fill out the app in person.
You do have the option of printing out the application and filling it out ahead of time. You also have the option of sending off your application in the mail. Yet that would be the option that took the longest amount of time before you have your replacement SS card in hand. The online replacement card application is the quickest way to handle getting your new card.
You’re likely going to get your credit cards in the mail before you get your replacement SS card. The government takes about 10-14 business days to get your new card sent to you. The corporate world is going to act much more quickly, and of course they have good reason. They want you to be swiping those credit cards again in no time.
Once you report your credit cards lost or stolen, that’s all she wrote on your end of the bargain. You’re just waiting for your new credit cards to arrive. Once you sign up for a My Social Security account and fill out the replacement SS card application online, then you’re done there, too. You’re just waiting for the SSA office to send your new social security card in the mail.
If you were to need to change your name on your social security card, then you would have to do that in person. You’re just trying to replace a lost SS card, however, and that can often be done online these days. So essentially, after losing your credit cards and social security card, you’re basically making a few phone calls, registering for an account and filling out an online application. They make it so easy these days, and that should take the sting out of losing your wallet.
