Articles
Who is the Plan Sponsor?
The term Plan Sponsor refers to the Employer who established and maintains the Plan. The entity is defined in the Plan Document. The Plan Sponsor has several major responsibilities: To act in the interest of the participants and beneficiaries To ...
Who is the Plan Administrator?
The person(s) or entity identified in the plan document as having responsibility for running the plan. It may be the employer, a committee, a company executive or someone hired for that purpose (3(16) Plan Administrator). A Plan Administrator may be...
Who and What is a Fiduciary?
A fiduciary is any person who uses their own discretion when administering and managing the plan or controlling the plan’s assets. Fiduciary status is based on functions performed, not just a person’s title. They ordinarily include the t...
Who is the Third Party Administrator (TPA)?
Sentinel Benefits & Financial Group is the third party administrator and recordkeeper, a non-fiduciary, helping you fulfill your administrative and compliance responsibilities in connection to the retirement plan. This includes assistance with c...
What are 3(16) Plan Administration Services?
Every tax-qualified retirement plan must have a person that serves as the “Plan Administrator” as defined in ERISA Section 3(16). The Plan Administrator is a statutory plan fiduciary and is ultimately responsible for all aspects of runni...
What is a Fidelity Bond?
ERISA requires that every fiduciary of an employee benefit plan and every person who handles plan funds be bonded. These bonds cover the plan from loss of assets due to fraud or dishonesty. The ERISA bond is required to protect the participants and ...
How do I track participant beneficiary elections?
Beneficiary designations are updated by participants through the Sentinel website. During the Online Enrollment Steps, a participant will be prompted and required to elect their beneficiary. In addition, a participant may change their election onlin...
What are the Sentinel Alert emails I receive?
Sentinel Alerts are email messages published by Sentinel Benefits & Financial Group featuring the latest in employee benefits news and industry legislation updates. ...