Congress gets closer to addressing the issue of lost retirement plans
By Emily Gilbert Here at PRC, we often hear from people who worked for a company that has since moved, been bought, or gone out of business, and they cannot find their retirement plan. The good news is that Congress seems to be getting closer to addressing this issue. In May of 2021, Senators Elizabeth […]
The Savings Game: Congress needs to help pensioners find their money
For years, members of Congress have been trying to pass legislation that will allow the federal government to establish a centralized database to help retirees locate their pension and 401(k) plans.
Senators revisit bill to create retirement account lost-and-found
A bipartisan bill to create a national online lost-and-found database for retirement accounts has been reintroduced in the Senate.
Retirement Plan Literacy—Answers to Common Questions: Part II
By David Brandolph In this, the second part of our April financial literacy month series, we answer two more of the top five questions that the Pension Rights Center commonly gets from people about their retirement benefits (Part I can be found here). Unless stated otherwise, answers relate to company or union sponsored private-sector retirement plans. Being […]
Welcome Labor Department Guidance on Missing Participants
By Jane Smith Recently issued Department of Labor guidance is an important step toward resolving the “missing participants” problem. Following several years of investigating how plans do, or do not, stay in touch with former employees who are due benefits, in January 2021, the Labor Department published a best practices guide for pension and retirement […]
How to Find a Lost Pension Plan
Some people lose track of their pension plan from an old job. A company might merge with or be bought by another company and change its name, move to a new location in a different city or go out of business.
Legislation offers hope for finding lost pensions
By Kyle Garrett In my 15 years at the Pension Rights Center my primary responsibility has been helping people get assistance with their pension problems. The most frequent question I get from callers is, “I worked for a company for a number of years and now that company is gone and I can’t find my […]
PBGC Advocate’s Report Highlights Issues Important to Retirees
By Emily Spreiser Recently we posted a five-part “Know Your Agencies” blog series covering government agencies that play a role in regulating retirement plans. Our third post focused on the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC), a federal agency that acts as an insurer for pension plans sponsored by private employers. Since the PBGC pays benefits […]
Interconnected Disconnections: When Former Employees and their Retirement Plans Can’t Find Each Other
By Emily Spreiser When I was in high school I was very lucky to be able to go on a school trip to France with a bunch of other American students. One day we were touring a market in in the South of France and, eager to practice what I had learned in French class, […]
Senate Lost and Found bill would help many retirees but would harm others
By Jane Smith Originally introduced in 2016 by Senators Elizabeth Warren (D–MA) and Steve Daines (R–MT), the Retirement Savings Lost and Found Act of 2016 (S. 3078) would have been a great help to the many retirees who are now searching for their earned retirement benefits. The Pension Rights Center wholeheartedly supported that bill. Unfortunately, […]
Pensions lost and (hopefully) found
Imagine earning a pension after many years of hard work with a company. Then you leave your employer before retiring and without claiming your pension. When you reach retirement age, you expect to be able to start receiving that pension but you are unable to find the employer or the plan. Your pension plan is […]
PRC comments to PBGC on missing participants and lost plans (August 20, 2013)
The Pension Rights Center submitted comments [PDF] to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation in response to its Request for Information on establishing a program to help locate workers and retirees in defined contribution plans that have terminated. The Center also recommended establishing a Lost Plan Registry, which would help individuals find and claim pension benefits […]
