How to Claim Pension Benefits from a Former Employer

When you reach retirement age, you may have pension benefits you can claim from former employers. If you worked for an employer that had a defined benefit plan and you met the requirements, you can claim the pension benefit when you reach the required age. You could be entitled to this pension benefit even if your former employer has changed ownership or gone out of business.

As Gary Pastorius, spokesman for the Pension Benefits Guaranty Corporation is quoted in an article in The Dallas Morning News, once you are vested in a former employer's pension plan you are entitled to the benefits, no matter how long ago you left that job. Whether you are vested in the pension plan depends on the plan requirements. For example, you may have been required to work for the company for five, ten, or twenty years to be eligible for pension benefits.

The amount of the pension benefits also depends on the individual plan and is generally based on factors such as your salary or wages and how long you worked in the company. In some plans you may be able to start receiving a pension at a certain age, with the monthly benefit increasing for each year of age up to a maximum. The plan rules that were in effect when you left the company are the rules that apply to you.

The summary plan description for the pension plan points out the eligibility requirements, and when you are eligible to start receiving pension benefits. If you have kept a copy of this plan, it should also have information for contacting the plan administrator. If you do not have any documents or records to contact the pension plan administrator, you may be able to find information through the Pension Benefits Guaranty Corporation.

Martha M. Hamilton, in an article for the Buffalo News, quotes Ellen Bruce, director of the New England Pension Assistance Fund as pointing out that pension plans do not normally have a system for sending notices to beneficiaries when they reach retirement age. And although defined benefit plans have a fiduciary obligation to pay benefits, they are not required to track down potential recipients. So it is up to beneficiaries to claim the benefits.

As the Pension Benefits Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) points out in its booklet, Finding a Lost Pension, pension money may be sitting in a pension fund waiting for beneficiaries to claim it. The PBGC takes over some pension plans from companies that have gone out of business. One shortcut way to find this type of pension benefits would be to use the PBGC's Find Missing Participants search tool. This is an online listing of people who are entitled to benefits but cannot be located.

The PBGC's Finding a Lost Pension booklet lists a variety of other ways you can search for a pension plan administrator and sources you can use. Carole Fleck, writing for AARP, points out free pension counseling and information services that can help you to find a lost pension. There are programs in 29 states and you don't need to be a current resident of one of those states to get help. You can find these programs on the Pension Rights Center website. You could also find help online on the Pension Help America website. The Pension Rights Center also offers Tips for Keeping Track of Your Pension.

Sources:

Carole Fleck, Finding a Missing Pension, AARP

Counseling Projects, Pension, Pension Rights Center

Find Missing Participants, Pension Benefits Guaranty Corporation

Finding a Lost Pension, Pension Benefits Guaranty Corporation

How to track down your pension from a past job, The Dallas Morning News

Martha M. Hamilton, How to locate pensions from past employers, Buffalo News

Pension Help America