November 25, 2024 News

Hans Lodge Interviewed on CBS New York About the Problems Individuals Face When Wrongly Declared as Deceased by the Social Security Administration

Berger Montague Shareholder Hans Lodge was recently interviewed by CBS Investigative Reporter Tim McNicholas on the prevalence and consequences of the Social Security Administration (SSA) incorrectly declaring living individuals as deceased. The story aired on November 20 on CBS New York.

The segment featured Sandra Hazel’s story, who has been battling the fall out from being wrongly designated as deceased by the SSA. Not only has it affected her ability to collect Social Security retirement benefits, but it has also caused complications with the IRS and her ability to file her taxes.

Hans Lodge, who focuses his practice at Berger Montague on claims brought under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”), sees these problems all too often, having filed numerous federal lawsuits under the FCRA on behalf of consumers who were falsely reported as deceased by credit bureaus and other reporting agencies. A falsely reported death from the SSA can not only prevent individuals from collecting benefits from the agency, but it can also prevent them from opening new lines of credit and bank accounts, or even getting a job.

In the news segment, Mr. Lodge commented on how harmful this error can be:

“It’s paralyzing. There is nothing you can do with your credit when you are deceased in the eyes of the credit bureaus, consumer reporting agencies more generally, or lenders. You may not be able to open a bank account, something that simple, so that’s why it’s such a serious problem when it happens and it needs to be rectified very quickly.”

“We have an incredible team of FCRA litigators here at Berger Montague,” said Shareholder Hans Lodge. “Both our Individual and Class Action FCRA Teams are dedicated to representing consumers who are falsely reported as deceased on their credit reports.”

You can reach us by filling out the contact form on our website, or you can get in touch with our Credit Reporting and Background Check attorneys directly.”

To watch the full story, visit CBS New York’s website.

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