Appointment necessary ???

Wouldn't it make sense to call your local social security office and find out?

My personal experience (SW FL) is that if I were decide to just arrive at my local Social Security office without an appointment, I might be seen but there's most often a long wait as there's a very large elder population as well as recipients who are not elderly but also need services.

How hard is to make a call to your local or regional office and set up an appointment?

Furthermore, SS has an active website that provides an amazing amount of useful information and some of the process you might seek might be sped up or done online:

http://www.ssa.gov/

Likewise, at the same website, here's their FAQ information listing:
https://faq.ssa.gov/ics/support/default.asp?deptID=34019&_referrer=

I was hoping someone who had been through the process already with or without an appointment could answer my question.

Perhaps I was not being clear, I have done so and also you can make a phone call and/or go to their website and start the processing of an application.

Perhaps, I am not making myself clear...Has anyone NOT made an appointment to apply for Social Security Retirement Benefits, went to their local office and helped???? Yes I can make a call tomorrow, but today is Sunday,they're closed and I thought someone who had already been through the process(without an appointment) would be nice enough to answer..that's all....

Please, any of you out there , who went to your Social Security Office without an appointment and were helped, let me know...thanks for your time and help...

Allow me explain again. I have gone in to my local SS office without an appointment and that wait was lengthy.

However, this SS office is in Bradenton FL, and, as such, this might have little to do with your local office.

Have you checked out the SS website link which I supplied you ?

I went without an appointment on a Tuesday. I got a number and waited about 15 minutes. (Don't go on a Monday )

I don't believe they take appointments.

Thank You Punkey,for your help....I don't mind waiting in line.....that's everyday living for all of us.....

I just didn't want to be turned away after I made the trip....because I didn't have an appointment.....

I'll make the trip and wait my turn and take care of business...
Again, Thank You Punkey....you answered my question and were a big help....

As an example, when I went to my local SS office, they closed on Wed afternoon. I wasted my time because I didn't call first. So each office, as with any business, might have differing scenarios. The workload in one populated area and staffing levels might differ greatly. My constructive suggestion simply is to make a call first.