In addition to monthly survivor benefits, Social Security may pay a lump-sum death benefit to a qualifying surviving spouse. This payment is best described as:
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Answer & full 3-part explanation (select an option above, or peek)
Why A is correct
Social Security pays a one-time lump-sum death benefit to a qualifying surviving spouse or eligible child, and the amount is modest and fixed by statute. It is intended to help with burial or final expenses, not to replace income. The payment is payable even if the worker was not fully insured, as long as the worker earned enough credits. Because the payment is small, most family financial protection must come from life insurance rather than this Social Security benefit. Because the amount is so small, an advisor must never present the lump-sum benefit as meaningful income replacement; life insurance fills that role instead.
Why the other options are wrong
- B) The lump-sum payment is not tied to the worker's salary; it is a fixed statutory amount, not a multiple of earnings. The payment is set by statute and does not vary with earnings in any way.
- C) It is not a year of survivor benefits; the lump sum is a single small payment, not a multiple of monthly benefits. It is a single payment, not a stream equal to a year of monthly benefits.
- D) The payment is unrelated to tax refunds; it is a Social Security benefit payable upon the worker's death. Tax refunds are an unrelated federal process; the payment is a Social Security survivor benefit.
Memory hook
A one-time, limited burial payment from Social Security, not a paycheck replacement.