When to change benefit carriers? The quick answer is only after you’ve exhausted all other avenues with your existing carrier. Many brokers will paint this portrait of changing to their carrier will be less expensive, better service, greater satisfaction levels for employees and a vast improvement over your previous supplier. Reality is often a much different scenario. In fact, … Read More
How Much Should I Budget for my First Employee Benefits Plan?
So you’re challenged to get the best employees because you don’t offer a benefit plan. You run the risk of losing a valuable employee because you don’t have a benefit plan. You want to offer security to employees, but you don’t want to jeopardize your company’s bottom line in the process. What will a benefit plan cost my business? Whatever is … Read More
How Can Your Benefits Plan Benefit From a Third Party Administrator?
A prospective client asked me recently ‘why use a Third Party Administrator?’ I thought this was a blog-worthy item of interest and write about it this week as this is not the first time I’ve been asked this question. First of all, it’s important to understand what a TPA is all about and what role do they fulfil within the … Read More
What You Need to Know About Employee Benefit Plans for Business Owners?
Business Owners: An Important Guide to Employee Benefit Plans Business owners need to be aware of the vital parts of an employee benefit plan. Whether you manage the plan yourself or you have someone else within your business that acts as a benefits administrator, you need to be aware of some key elements that can reduce long term cost, create greater … Read More
Why Don’t You Want to be a Business Owner Without a Benefits Plan?
Should You Be Paying Personally for Health and Dental Expenses? In short, the answer is no. You can pay more taxes, but why would you? As business owners, the CRA gives us very few opportunities to do things in a tax-preferred way. Business owners are entitled to write off legitimate health and dental expenses through your business. There are a … Read More
Why You Deserve to Know How Much You’re Paying Your Benefits Consultant
Let’s be clear about this; transparency and disclosure of compensation is a sign of the times. Some industries work on this premise. It helps to earn trust with clients and ensure that you’re making recommendations because it is in your clients’ best interests and not your own. So how much do benefit consultants get paid? I’m not going to … Read More
What are the Not So Obvious Factors That Impact Employee Benefits Cost?
Over the past couple of decades, employee benefits have increased in importance and have become a critical part of employee compensation programs. Employees are using their dental, prescription drug, paramedical and vision coverage at record levels. The three major factors contributing to the increases in benefits costs are: Aging: As we get older, we use more health care products and … Read More
9 Best Practices to Setting Up a Successful Employee Benefit Plan
All Employee Benefit Plans Should Not Be Created Equal When setting up an employee benefit plan, not enough attention is paid to future sustainability and the important considerations that need to be taken into account setting up an employee benefit plan or changing benefit providers. Weigh these tips very carefully when going through the set-up process and you can avoid … Read More
Is it Time to Get Rid of Accidental Death and Dismemberment Insurance?
Most companies have Accidental Death and Dismemberment Insurance (AD&D) on their group benefit plans but should they? This type of insurance provides benefits for injury resulting in loss or permanent and total loss of use of body parts. It also pays out a benefit in the event of death caused by an accident on or off the job. It’s a … Read More
Which of the 4 Benefits Plan Funding Models is Right For Your Company?
Today, the stakes are high when setting up an employee benefit plan for your company. Trying to find common ground on risk adversity, cost certainty, employee security, plan sustainability, and affordability all begin with your plan funding model. Arguably, your plan funding model can represent one of your most important decisions when setting up your plan. Arbitrarily deciding one or … Read More