Spare Yourself Administrative, Litigation Grief

As a Service Consultant who works closely with benefit plan administrators across Canada, I notice some common benefit related tribulations that can take up a fair bit of my clients’ time.  Let me share a few with you and, perhaps by reading through, you might be inspired to correct any lapses or gaps that might exist in your benefit plan administration.  Basically, I’m writing now to spare you some administrative or litigation grief later.

• Beneficiary appointments/updates – Those of us in the benefits world are well aware that people usually don’t think much about their insurance details…not unless there is a problem.  We get that.  But, in the event of a problem, details obviously need to be in order.  A major one is that of beneficiary appointments and this applies to life, optional life and accidental death and dismemberment insurance (AD&D).  Considering that families often evolve, plan members need to occasionally re-visit their beneficiary decision. As a plan administrator if you are aware of a change in an employee’s life such as marriage, divorce, or a new child, this is a good opportunity to remind them to update their beneficiary information.  Otherwise, there could be an issue at the time of claim and that is not a good time to discover that an ex-spouse is still listed as primary beneficiary. 

Reminding employees to remember their beneficiary designation is also an opportunity to discuss adding or removing dependents from benefits.  Keep in mind that original signatures are always required.  Given the advancements in technology, some clients are moving to paperless environments; despite that, it is important to remember that an original signature is always required for beneficiary purposes.

• Make sure to inform ALL carriers – When there are updates to name, dependent, coverage, or salary, most plan administrators are great at informing the health and dental provider about the changes.  But if you have multiple carriers – one for disability, one for life, etc. – don’t forget to inform ALL of them of these changes, too.  Obviously, all providers need to be made aware of personal updates affecting an individual’s coverage.

And, to wrap up, I have a suggestion on how you can save yourself some time by reducing the number of benefit questions you may get.  If you find yourself spending too much time telling people how many units of dental scaling they are entitled to or whether or not there is any room left in their vision benefit for a new pair of glasses, you should direct employees to your insurer’s resources for answers to common questions.  Most insurer websites have personal and secure log-in features allowing plan members to look up coverage details, claims status, etc., and enables on-line claiming.  Encourage plan members to register for on-line access and free up some of your time.

I hope that helps!

Amy Gasparini

Pal Service Consultant