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Said wrong - implications?


Guest jgroves

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Totally made up Scenario - Employee told they could take their retirement at age 55 (reduced). However, when calculation was run it turns out that they can not get it until age 60. Employee notified within a week with correct age. SPD, Plan Doc. and Employee Benefit Summary (given once per year) all state age 60 as earliest date to receive reduced benefit. None the less, Employee was told wrong thing. Any legal implications? Looking for something stating: "The employer will not be held liable if benefit is clearly stated in documentation"!!

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Well, that is one of the reasons for the SPD requirement. Employer has the responsibility to provide (an accurate) one. Employee has the responsibility to read it.

Still, anyone can sue anybody for anything.

I'm a retirement actuary. Nothing about my comments is intended or should be construed as investment, tax, legal or accounting advice. Occasionally, but not all the time, it might be reasonable to interpret my comments as actuarial or consulting advice.

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This is a nonlawyer answer:

As long as the person did not do anything that relied on the misinformation before getting the corrected answer, there would be no damages to sue for. However, if the employee ran out and changed their asset allocations expecting to retire soon, put money down on a condo, etc., then there could be problems.

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I disagree with MGB.

Employers are generally not liable for consequential damages under ERISA. All that the employee can recover are the benefits to which the employee is entitled under the terms of the plan. This is why the plaintiff's bar hates ERISA; its preemption of state law remedies.

Kirk Maldonado

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