Four Ways To Report A Lost Social Security Card

If you have recently lost your Social Security card, you may want to consider getting a new one soon. There are many reasons that you should do this quickly. You may have a job coming up that you would like to apply for, or perhaps you would like to apply for a credit card, forms that will require your Social Security number. Additionally, if it has been lost, there is the possibility that it may have been stolen. It’s always good to have one on you at all times. There are four specific ways to report a lost Social Security card. Here are the strategies that you can use to quickly get your new Social Security card sent to you, as well as ways to report that it has been stolen or lost.

Why You Should Report A Lost Social Security Card

There are several reasons why you may want to do this. In general, if you have simply lost it, that’s not a reason to report it at all. You may have simply misplaced it, and this will only require you to apply for a new one. When you get a new one, it’s going to be the same number that you had before. They are simply sending you a brand-new card with your name and number. If you do need to report it, it is typically because you are realizing someone has stolen your identity and they are using your Social Security card number to take out loans.

How Do You Get A New One?

If you would like to get a new one, there are only a few steps that you need to take. First of all, you can go to the Social Security Administration website and fill out the digital form. The other option is to go to the local Social Security Administration office. They will provide you with the form, as well as any assistance that you will need, as you are filling it out. Once you have done this, it’s going to take several weeks for it to get back to you. In most cases, two weeks is the usual amount of time. Unless there are any complications with it, or if you are doing something such as changing the number, it will take a bit longer to go through this process. You are also able to get a new card quickly online at  http://www.assistedonlinefilings.com/.

What If You Do Not Report Your Social Security Card Being Lost?

If you do not report that it is lost, and you simply order a new one, there is nothing wrong with doing so. As mentioned before, unless you are facing some type of financial situation where your identity has been stolen, you simply need to get a new one. On the other hand, if you don’t report it, and your identity has been stolen, this could be problematic. The sooner that you do this after noticing that loans are taken out in your name, the faster they will be able to resolve the situation.

What If Your Identity Has Been Stolen?

If identity theft has occurred, the first thing you need to do is find out what your options are. Someone may recommend that you change the number altogether. This will allow the federal government to assign you a different number, and then everything else that you do from that point forward will be with this new number you are assigned. This is the best way to terminate any illegal activity that is happening as a result of your identity being stolen by thieves. When your old number is used, you will not be identified with that number, and they will not be able to get that money.

Is It Easy To Lose Your Social Security Card?

Just like any other card that you may have in your wallet or purse, they are very small. It is quite possible that you may lose this several times in your life. In most cases, people simply request a new one because they have washed their wallet, or their purse has gotten wet, and they need a replacement. The only time that you will ever need to change that number, and additionally report that it was stolen, is if there is illegal activity that has been detected. At that point, the federal government will be more than happy to issue you a completely different number to help you resolve that situation.

Four Ways To Report A Lost Social Security Card

if you do feel compelled to report that it is lost, there are several things you can do. First of all, you can contact the local Social Security administration and they will be able to help you order a new one. They will ask if it needs to be changed, or if you simply need to duplicate, and that will help them determine what paperwork you need to fill out. The second way is to contact the Social Security Administration by email. You can provide them with all of your information in that format. That gives them a physical record of your statement that your Social Security card has been lost. A third way is to tell the police what has occurred. This is usually in conjunction with realizing that illegal activity is still occurring. Finally, if this becomes an even more prominent case, you may have to surrender your Social Security number if this becomes something at the federal level. At that point, you would want to contact the FBI, or some larger organization, that can help you with your problem.

Will It Take Long To Complete These Reports?

Unless you are writing out some type of letter that is discussing your situation, reporting this will only take a few minutes. That would also include how long it would take to send an email to the Social Security Administration. If this is a police report, then it will certainly take longer. Otherwise, you are looking at less than an hour of your time to complete this process. If you are asked for any additional information, that could take longer, but it is likely not to happen. They will probably have individuals on staff that have already identified the potential culprit, and this can help stop them from doing any more damage.

Now that you know the four different ways that you could report your Social Security card stolen, and also how to get a new one, you now know exactly what to do. It is a common problem because of the size of the Social Security card that it can be lost or damaged quite easily. If this becomes a criminal investigation because of your identity theft, it may take longer when providing a statement on what has occurred. By contacting the Social Security Administration, or the authorities, you can easily report your card was stolen.