Claim Eligible Survivor Benefits After a Family Death
Build a benefits map of every claim a recent death may have unlocked, notify the right institutions, submit each claim with the correct documents, and hold a determination — paid, pending, or denied — for Social Security, employer, pension, insurance, and veterans benefits.
Free preview: 4 of 22 steps
Work through them in the real run view, exactly as a buyer does. No account, no payment, nothing saved.
3 free unlocks per month — yours to keep forever
No account needed — nothing is saved.
Included with every copy
- Your own copy — keep it forever
- Gets better over time — free updates included
- Run it on web and mobile
- Invite a partner to go through it with you — you share the same progress
- Make it your own — a private copy you can edit to fit your situation
- The playbook's community — ask questions, get additions, and see how other buyers improve it, right on the step
Who it's for
US surviving spouses and dependents (minor or disabled children, dependent parents) acting on their own behalf, plus executors or estate representatives handling claims after a recent family death. The full path fits a spouse or dependent; the final phases cover veterans claims only if the deceased served.
About this playbook
This guide walks a surviving spouse, dependent, or estate representative through the benefits that exist after a family death: the Social Security survivor claims and $255 lump-sum payment, employer group life insurance, 401(k), 403(b) and pension payouts, private life insurance and annuities, payable-on-death accounts, and veterans benefits. The path runs in two modes: a short planning stage that assembles your evidence kit and produces a benefits map — one table of every eligible claim with the documents, deadlines, and priority each one needs — and then a claims procedure in which you work source by source: submit, track, and respond until you hold the award notice. Earlier claims do not depend on later ones, so you can start the day you have a death certificate. The guide does not cover probate litigation, estate income-tax filing, or negotiating with creditors. By the end every eligible claim is filed and its outcome is verified against the map.
What you'll do, step by stepFree preview
Only a sample is open: 4 of 22 steps can be read in full. The rest unlock when you buy.
Phase 1: Assemble the evidence kit and benefits map
5 stepsPhase 2: Claim Social Security survivor benefits
4 stepsPhase 3: Claim employer and pension benefits
4 stepsPhase 4: Claim insurance policies and bank accounts
3 stepsPhase 5: Claim veterans benefits if the deceased served
3 stepsPhase 6: Verify determinations and close the loop
3 steps
Details
What you need first
The death has occurred and you can obtain a certified death certificate. You can reach the deceased's personal records: tax returns, pay stubs, benefit statements, insurance policies, bank and brokerage statements, and mail. You are the surviving spouse, a dependent, or the person appointed to act for the estate.
