Name change vendors

I looked into it briefly, and they're not worth the cost. All they do is gather the applications you need to fill out. All these forms are available for free online and are only about a page long. I had 3 forms to fill out: Social Security, passport, and my state's DMV. The bank required me to go in person and show my marriage certificate and new license. Everything else was fine with me just emailing customer service with a scanned PDF of the marriage certificate and my updated driver's license. These are all things the services do not do.

Name changes are so common that they are very easy and straightforward.

To my knowledge, the services do not actually perform the changes for you (that is, send your paperwork off, fax/email, etc.) I'm not entirely sure they are even allowed to, as many of these contain personal/private information and some even require you to be present in person (such as driver's license and SS card.)

You can find free checklists online as to what things you should make sure to change.

No. They are not worth it. You can change your name, quite easily, for free. I had my name changed on everything in less than 2 weeks and didn't pay a dime.

View Quoted Comment Thank you, this is helpful!

View Quoted Comment Thanks for the insight!

View Quoted Comment How many copies of your marriage license did you need to have? I’ve heard you may not always get your copy back from various agencies?

View Quoted Comment You need a certified copy for the SS office. No office ever kept a copy. But we got 2, just in case.