A man from Seattle, who is very much alive, got a nasty shock when his wife received a letter from Social Security and the bank offering condolences for her husband's passing.
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Ned Johnson, 82, was mistakenly declared dead, which played havoc with his records and even affected his social security checks. Per a report and interview with ABC News, Bank of America withdrew social security checks it had previously deposited in Johnson's account. It reportedly took Johnson an agonizing two months of phone calls and letters to prove that he was still alive. However, even with everything presumably in order, Johnson says, "This thing follows you like a bad smell."
He told ABC that he is now on the 'Death Master File' which "will chase me for the rest of my life." He explains that when Social Security listed him as deceased, he ended up on a Database that "apparently doesn't go away."
The Couple Thought The Social Security Letter Was A Scam
Pam Johnson told ABC that she thought the letter was a scam at first. Eventually, Ned went to the Social Security office in person to sort things out, but not before they kept him waiting for over four hours. It took a worker around half an hour to clear everything up. Unfortunately , there are still lingering issues.
Ned says that he received the previously withdrawn checks, "but they are starting to deduct checks from our account as well." The couple say they are lucky enough to be financially stable, but the real victims are those who rely on these checks. "For some people, this would just be impossible," Pam said.
Ned also offered some sobering advice for others in the same situation. "My advice would be to watch your bank account and be prepared to, if you get tagged with one of these issues, it's going to take some time. You just have to be patient and persistent if you expect to get anywhere."
The incident in Seattle isn't the first time authorities have mistakenly declared someone dead. Back in February, Masithokoze Moyo tried to swap her account from the Cooperative Bank to another provider. Instead of simply closing her account, the Bank reportedly changed her status to 'deceased.'
This account flag started a disastrous chain reaction, affecting everything from her driving license to her Credit score. She is seeking compensation.
