Kathrine Neubauer was declared dead several months ago.

She’s had nothing but trouble ever since.

The 81-year-old Cottonwood, Calif., resident lost her Social Security benefits. She’s been unable to get bank loans or financing. Often, she can’t even make common purchases.

“It’s getting annoying and embarrassing, “Neubauer said. “When I go to buy something, I don’t know whether or not I am going to be dead.”

Neubauer’s partner died three years ago. Their finances were co-mingled in a trust, she said.

In October, the Social Security Administration cut Neubauer’s benefits, believing she had died with her partner.

Neubauer spent months trying to convince Social Security she is alive.

“One time I was on the phone with a woman from Social Security and I asked her, when did I die, what did I die from and where am I buried,” Neubauer said. “I said I would like to visit me once in awhile and bring me some flowers. And she said, ’You are nothing but a smart ass!’ and hung up.”

Social Security in December restored Neubauer’s benefits and issued her a $2,000 check for the payments she had missed.

Neubauer thought her troubles were over.

But last month, she drove her motor home into the desert. She was eating lunch in a Parker, Ariz., restaurant when someone rammed her rig and left without leaving a note.

She went to trade her hobbled RV for another, planning to finance the purchase.

“And that’s when I discovered I’m still a dead duck,” Neubauer said.

The dealer declined to accept a credit application from someone listed as deceased and without a FICO score. She wound up paying cash, calling her bank to have money wired.

The dealer insisted she leave a $500 deposit. Ironically, she said, the dealer accepted her credit card.

Neubauer is accustomed to using her credit card at Wal-Mart, restaurants and other businesses. But these days, she never knows if her payment will be accepted, since the credit bureaus regard her as nonexistent.

Now Neubauer brings her passport and birth certificate along with her driver’s licence to make even common purchases. And sometimes that documentation is still not enough to convince corporations, banks and merchants she’s not a ghost.

Neubauer’s predicament became absurd — and expensive — when she recently went to apply for a loan at a bank she won’t name.

The bank processed her loan application, granting her the advertised interest rate. Then the loan officer discovered Neubauer was supposedly dead.

“After they found out I was deceased, they said they could get me the loan, but they’d charge me an interest rate that was one per cent higher,” Neubauer said.

Neubauer said she’s consulted two attorneys for advice on how to get off the deceased list. Neither could help.

Joe Rodola, a credit counsellor with ByDesign Financial Solutions in Redding, Calif., said he’s never heard of anyone stuck in situation like Neubauer’s.

“It’s probably best to start with the credit bureaus and get a human to listen to the issue,” Rodola said.