ERISA compliance for retirement plans is difficult to navigate and mistakes are costly for organizations who make errors, even when they are unintentional. Failure to comply with these complicated rules happen frequently, which could lead to crippling legal action, increased audit scrutiny from the Internal Revenue Service and Department of Labor leading to an expensive correction process and financial penalties or fines. Help your clients avoid penalties, fines and a growing area of litigation by retaining an organization providing professional ERISA compliance services as a resource and service differentiator that can reinforce your role as a trusted advisor.
Whether you’re a Financial Advisor, Recordkeeper, CPA or an attorney, below is a discussion of some ways that professional ERISA compliance services can help you protect your client’s fiduciary liability and reduce the risks associated with retirement plan management.
Protect Your Client’s Liability with ERISA Compliance Services
Did you realize that as many as three out of four employers are out of compliance with ERISA requirements according to a Department of Labor study? All employers that sponsor a benefit plan are subject to the high standards of fiduciary conduct of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).
With the increasing oversight of retirement plans, an advisors guidance on how a plan sponsor can protect themselves from exposure to potential fines from government agencies or legal action from plan participants for non-compliance is vital.
Partnering with professional ERISA compliance services can help you provide your client with a comprehensive ERISA 3(16) administrative fiduciary solution by simplifying administrative fiduciary duties, benchmarking vendor fees for reasonableness and protecting the tax-qualified status of the plan.
Increase Efficiencies
Retirement plan administrators are subject to many ERISA fiduciary responsibilities. If not adhered to, they may be subject to potential legal ramifications and financial risk. Whether it’s providing a summary plan description, mandatory notices or signing the Form 5500, many organizations are wise to outsource these administrative duties to a professional ERISA compliance service organization. Employers can ensure compliance rules are met efficiently and reduce fiduciary responsibility inherent in retirement plan management.
Offer Protection
Most employers who provide a 401(k) to their employees are not aware of the business and personal liability risks associated with managing a retirement plan. For example, many employers are administering plans without following or understanding the terms in their Plan Document. For example, incorrectly administering participant eligibility, loans or timeliness of contributions lead to failure to properly administer the plan in accordance with the plan document. Costly mistakes, because of the failure to comply with the ERISA requirements, can jeopardize the tax-qualified status of the plan.
NPPG Fiduciary Services, LLC – Providing ERISA Compliance Services
It takes expertise to correctly administer a retirement plan and stay in compliance with ERISA regulations. By utilizing professional ERISA compliance services, Financial Advisors, Recordkeepers, CPA’s and attorneys can provide a comprehensive fiduciary solution and position themselves as a valuable resource to help protect their client’s liability.
At NPPG, we believe that plan sponsors should not have to bear the financial and legal exposure associated with potential ERISA compliance errors. Through our professional ERISA 3(16) Administrative Fiduciary compliance service, we can help you reduce your client’s labor burden and decrease their fiduciary risk.