Question about two SSI accounts (husband/wife)

[PeterB456245]

My wife and I are both retired, both upper 60’s, and both have SSI accounts, but haven’t started taking them yet. I’m reasonably healthy, but she is too, and statistically, she’s likely to outlive me. My proposed benefit payment is considerably more than hers.

I wasn’t going to start taking benefits until I had to (ie 70 1/2 currently?), since we are fairly comfortable financially, and my benefit will increase if we wait. Also, our understanding is that if I die first, as a surviving spouse she gets to receive my benefit…but not *both* mine and hers.

So we’re thinking, in a practical sense, we maybe should have her start taking her benefit now, since if if I get hit by a truck next year, at that point she effectively loses her benefit (and switches to mine).

Does that make sense? Do we have our facts right?