anyone ever "cured" a defective 204(h) notice?

[Gudgergirl]

Employer sends out notice telling employees: effective DATE the employer contribution is reduced to X%.

The timing and delivery of the notice comply with Code section 4980F.

The notice fails to state what the employer contribution was before the change. See 54.4980F-1 Q&A 11(a)(3)(i).

So the notice is technically deficient. Assuming a technically deficient notice is no notice at all...

54.4980B-1 Q&A 14 & 15 address the failure to provide a 204(h) notice

Q&A - 14 states that for egregious failures all applicable individuals are entitled to the greater of the benefit to which they would have been entitled without regard to the amendment. Egregious failures are either intentional (which this was not) or result in a failure to provide most of the individuals with most of the info they are entitled to receive. I believe we are safe here because everyone got most of the info and the info they didn't get in the notice (info regarding the employer contribution prior to the change) they already had in their SPD.

Q&A - 15(b) says the excise tax doesn't apply in two situations:

1. no excise tax is imposed on a failure for any period during which it is established to the satisfaction of the Commissioner that the employer exercised reasonable diligence, but did not know the failure existed. (This is also in 4980F©(1)) - I have no idea how you do this. Do you?

2. no excise tax applies to a failure to provide a Section 204(h) notice if the employer exercised reasonable diligence and corrects the failure within 30 days after the employer first knew or exercising reasonable diligence would have known that such failure existed. (See also 2980F©(2)) - This has potential. Has anyone ever "cured" a defective 204(h) notice in this way?

There is an example in the regs but it assumes the 204(h) notice contains the proper information, it was just misdelieverd to a group of participants.

I am wondering how this works in my case because the notice relates to a change that took place over a year ago. It seems like participants would be confused if the employer handed out a new notice saying essentially - effective last year we changed the employer contribution from Y% to X%.