Verification Issues Due to Incorrect Personal Information
Overview
Sunset uses advanced identity verification systems to confirm both your identity and the identity of the deceased before beginning the financial account search. This verification is legally required - financial institutions will only release account information to authorized individuals who can prove their identity and the death of the account holder.
When verification fails, it's almost always because the information entered doesn't match what appears in official records databases. Even small discrepancies can cause verification to fail. The good news is that most verification issues can be resolved by updating the information to match official records exactly.
Why Verification Is Required
Financial institutions are legally obligated to protect account holder privacy, even after death. Before releasing any account information, they require:
Proof that the person requesting information is who they claim to be
Proof that the account holder is deceased
Proof that the requester has legal authority to access the information
Sunset's verification system checks your information against official databases (credit bureaus, public records, government databases) to satisfy these requirements. If the information doesn't match, the verification fails and we cannot proceed with the financial search.
What Happens When Verification Fails
If verification fails for either you or the deceased, you'll see a message indicating which information needs to be corrected. You'll have the opportunity to update:
For the deceased:
Full legal name (including middle name or initial)
Social Security Number
Date of birth
Date of death
Last known address
Previous addresses
Phone number
For you (the user):
Full legal name
Date of birth
Current address
Previous addresses
Phone number
Social Security Number (if required for your level of access)
Common Reasons Deceased Verification Fails
Name spelling doesn't match official records:
The name must be entered exactly as it appears on official documents. Common issues include:
Missing middle name or middle initial (John Smith vs. John P. Smith)
Nickname used instead of legal name (Bob instead of Robert)
Shortened version of name (Chris instead of Christopher)
Different spelling variation (Katherine vs. Catherine, Steven vs. Stephen)
Hyphenated last names entered incorrectly (Smith-Jones vs. Smith Jones)
Suffix missing or incorrect (John Smith Jr. vs. John Smith II)
Extra spaces or punctuation (Mary- Anne vs. Mary-Anne)
Example: If the deceased's legal name was "Robert James Patterson Jr." but you entered "Bob Patterson," verification will fail. Update it to match the death certificate exactly.
Date of birth is incorrect:
Even being off by one day will cause verification to fail:
Transposed digits (04/15/1952 entered as 04/15/1953)
Month and day reversed (March 8 entered as August 3)
Two-digit year causing confusion (52 interpreted as 1852 instead of 1952)
Typo in year (1962 instead of 1952)
Double-check the date of birth on the death certificate and enter it exactly as shown. The format should be MM/DD/YYYY.
Social Security Number issues:
SSN must match Social Security Administration records exactly:
Transposed digits (123-45-6789 entered as 123-46-5789)
Typo in any position
Dashes included when system expects no dashes, or vice versa
SSN belongs to a different person with a similar name
SSN not yet updated in death records (very recent deaths)
If you're uncertain about the SSN, check:
Previous tax returns
Social Security correspondence
Medicare card
Death certificate (some states include it)
Last known address doesn't match records:
The address must match what appears in official databases, which is usually the most recent address where the deceased received mail:
Apartment number missing or incorrect (123 Main St vs. 123 Main St Apt 4B)
Street abbreviation different (Street vs. St., Avenue vs. Ave.)
Different format (123 North Main Street vs. 123 N Main St)
PO Box used when physical address is in records, or vice versa
Recently moved and new address not yet in databases
Using a child's address instead of deceased's actual last residence
Example: If records show "456 Oak Avenue, Apartment 2B, Seattle, WA 98101" but you entered "456 Oak Ave, Seattle, WA," the verification may fail due to the missing apartment number.
Date of death is incorrect or not yet in databases:
Very recent deaths (within the past few weeks) may not yet be in all databases
Date entered incorrectly
Date on death certificate differs from date in Social Security Death Index
Death occurred in one state but certificate was issued in another, causing delays
For very recent deaths, it may take 2-4 weeks for the death to appear in all verification databases. You can proceed with other setup steps and retry verification later.
Previous addresses causing conflicts:
If the deceased had multiple addresses in recent years:
Try the address from 6-12 months ago instead of the most recent
Include the full previous address history if prompted
Ensure addresses don't overlap in dates
Common Reasons Your Verification Fails
Name doesn't match credit bureau or government records:
Similar to the deceased's verification, your name must match exactly:
Legal name vs. preferred name (Katherine on driver's license but goes by Kate)
Maiden name vs. married name
Recently changed name not yet updated in all systems
Name change due to divorce or adoption not reflected in credit records
Middle name or initial included inconsistently
Example: If your driver's license says "Jennifer Marie Williams" but you entered "Jenny Williams," update to the full legal name.
Date of birth doesn't match:
Typo in entry
Using a "privacy date of birth" that differs from your real DOB
Month and day transposed
Your date of birth must match what appears on your government-issued ID and in credit bureau records.
Current address doesn't match recent records:
Your address must match what's in credit bureau and public records databases:
Recently moved and new address not yet reported to credit bureaus
Using a temporary address instead of permanent address
Address format doesn't match (abbreviations, apartment numbers)
Mail forwarding address instead of physical residence
If you moved recently (within the last 3-6 months), try using your previous address instead - it may still be what appears in verification databases.
Phone number issues:
Number entered is no longer active
Number belongs to someone else
Area code changed
Using a work number instead of personal number
Use a mobile phone number that's been associated with your identity for at least several months.
Insufficient credit history:
If you're young, new to the country, or have intentionally avoided credit:
Credit bureaus may not have enough information to verify your identity
You may need to provide additional documentation
Alternative verification methods may be available
How to Fix Verification Issues
When the deceased cannot be verified:
Log in to your Sunset account
You'll see a message indicating verification failed
Click to update the deceased's information
Carefully review each field and compare it to official documents:
Death certificate for name, DOB, date of death
Social Security card or tax documents for SSN
Recent mail or bills for last address
Update any fields that don't match official records exactly
Pay special attention to:
Exact spelling including middle names
Full address including apartment numbers
Proper date format
Save changes
The system will automatically retry verification
If verification succeeds, you'll receive a confirmation and the search will begin. If it fails again, you'll see which specific fields are still causing issues.
When your information cannot be verified:
Log in to your Sunset account
You'll be prompted to review and update your personal information
Compare your entries to your government-issued ID (driver's license, passport)
Update fields to match your ID exactly
For address, use what appears on recent credit card bills or bank statements
Save changes and the system will retry verification
What If Information Is Correct But Still Fails?
Sometimes verification fails even when information is correct:
Recent name changes: If you or the deceased recently changed names (marriage, divorce, legal name change), credit bureaus and databases may not have updated records yet. This can take 3-6 months to fully propagate through all systems.
Solution: Try using the previous legal name for verification, then update to the new name after verification succeeds.
Very recent death: Deaths can take 2-4 weeks to appear in the Social Security Death Index and other databases used for verification.
Solution: Wait 2-3 weeks after the date of death, then retry verification. In the meantime, you can upload documents and prepare other information.
Credit freeze or fraud alert: If you or the deceased has a credit freeze or fraud alert in place, this can block verification attempts.
Solution: Temporarily lift the freeze, complete verification, then reinstate the freeze. You can do this through each credit bureau's website.
Multiple people with the same name and similar information: In rare cases, if the deceased (or you) has a very common name and there are multiple people with similar birthdates in the databases, verification may fail due to ambiguity.
Solution: Provide additional identifying information such as previous addresses, phone numbers, or any unique identifiers.
No credit history or thin credit file: If the deceased (elderly individuals, especially) or you have never had credit accounts, loans, or traditional financial relationships, there may be insufficient information in credit databases.
Solution: Contact Sunset support for alternative verification methods, which may include additional documentation or manual verification.
When Fields Are Locked
Sometimes you'll find that certain fields cannot be edited directly in the interface. This is a security measure to prevent unauthorized changes to critical information.
If you need to update a locked field:
Reply to any message from Sunset or email [email protected]
Specify exactly what needs to be changed
Provide the correct information (for example: "Date of birth should be 04/06/1979, not 04/06/1978")
Include supporting documentation if possible (photo of relevant section of death certificate or ID)
Our team will manually update the information and restart verification
Special Characters and Formatting
Names with special characters, hyphens, or apostrophes require careful attention:
Correct handling:
O'Brien (not OBrien or O Brien)
Mary-Kate (not Mary Kate or MaryKate)
José (use Jose if the database doesn't accept accent marks)
van der Berg (pay attention to capitalization and spacing)
When in doubt, use the spelling exactly as it appears on the death certificate or government-issued ID, even if it looks unusual.
Still Unable to Verify After Corrections
If you've carefully updated all information to match official documents and verification still fails:
Upload a clear, readable image of the death certificate
Email [email protected] with:
A brief description of the verification issue
What information you've tried updating
Confirmation that the information matches official documents exactly
Our team will manually review the information
We may request additional documentation to complete verification
In some cases, we can work with you to find alternative verification methods
Using Sunset Without Full Verification
If verification cannot be completed due to unusual circumstances (no SSN available, recent immigration, extremely limited financial history, or other edge cases), you're still welcome to use Sunset for organizational purposes.
Without full verification, you'll have access to:
Document storage and organization
Estate planning tools
Checklists and guides for estate administration
Manual data entry for tracking accounts and assets
However, the following features will be unavailable:
Automated financial account search across institutions
Estate bank account setup
Automated account closure requests
Direct communication with financial institutions on your behalf
Transfer of funds from discovered accounts
This still provides value for organizing estate information, but you'll need to conduct financial searches and account closures manually by contacting institutions directly.
Examples of Successfully Resolving Verification Issues
Example 1: Name spelling
Failed verification: "Robert Peterson"
Corrected to: "Robert James Peterson Jr."
Result: Verification successful
Example 2: Address formatting
Failed verification: "789 Elm St, Portland, OR"
Corrected to: "789 Elm Street, Unit 12, Portland, OR 97201"
Result: Verification successful
Example 3: Recent move
Failed verification: New address entered (moved 1 month ago)
Corrected to: Previous address from 6 months ago
Result: Verification successful
Example 4: Date format
Failed verification: 03/15/52 (system interpreted as 1852)
Corrected to: 03/15/1952
Result: Verification successful
Example 5: Maiden name vs. married name
Failed verification: Current married name used for user verification
Corrected to: Maiden name that still appears in credit records
Result: Verification successful, then updated profile after verification
Need Help?
Reply to any message from Sunset or email [email protected] and we'll help you identify which specific information is causing verification to fail and guide you through the correction process. Include any relevant documentation (death certificate, ID) to help us resolve the issue quickly.