Ric Edelman. (Photo: Melanie Waddell/ALM)
Financial Engines, the workplace division of Edelman Financial Engines, has launched an advisory service to help employees decide what should be done with job-based benefits such as 401(k) plan assets when they leave a job.
Under the service, known as Fiduciary Distribution Review, departing employees will be provided one-on-one meetings with a Financial Engines financial planner to discuss retirement plan distribution choices, in-plan income options and separation benefits.
"There is a lot of confusion and a general lack of awareness among employees about their 401(k) distribution options when they retire or change jobs," said Ric Edelman, co-founder and chairman, financial education and client experience for Edelman Financial Engines, in a statement.
Those employees can withdraw money from their 401(k) accounts, but they'll owe taxes on the distribution and a 10% penalty if under the age of 59-1/2; move the assets into a rollover IRA; or leave the funds in their 401(k) plan, which could likely charge lower institutional-level fees for investment options than those available in a rollover IRA. They also may have the option of moving the assets into the 401(k) plan of a new employer.
"There can be huge consequences from making the wrong decision," Edelman said, "ranging from taxes and penalties to higher fees and risky or poor performing investments."
Many employees aren't even aware of the options available to them. According to a survey of 1,071 individuals between ages 35 and 65 released by Financial Engines, 42% were unaware they could keep assets in a 401(k) plan even after leaving a job and 28% didn't know the potential tax liabilities and penalties if they choose certain distribution choices for those assets. Fifty-one percent were unaware that they might have the options of a reverse rollover, moving funds from an IRA account into an employer-sponsored 401(k) plan if their new employer allowed it.
