In the ever-evolving world of employee benefits and payroll, it's really important for plan administrators to regularly review their monthly statements.
This habit not only keeps you in the loop regarding any changes in employee benefits, but it also plays a key role in making sure those monthly billing statements are correct and resolving potential issues.
Why review statements?
It's important to routinely check benefits statements to spot any changes in an employee's profile that could impact payroll deductions or taxable benefits.
Significant life events like getting married, having a baby, or changes in family status can adjust an employee's benefits considerably.
For instance, adding a new dependent might change an employee's coverage from single to family, which could mean they’ll pay a different rate. If the employee pays for their premiums, their payroll deductions should be adjusted to mirror the new family premium rate.
Instances when premiums change for Employees
There are several circumstances when an employee's monthly premium might change:
- Change from single to family coverage
- Change of province: Taxes are calculated differently depending on the province of residence
- Change in salary: This only applies if there are benefits based on salary
- NEM applications: To learn more, check out this post about Communicating the NEM
- Optional Benefits: Some plans include optional benefits where an employee can apply to an increase in benefits such as Life or Critical Illness. Optional benefits are always paid by the employee, so any approved applications will appear on your group’s monthly carrier statement and will need to be added to that employee’s payroll deductions
Instances when rates change on a Policy
The rates for your whole policy would only change in a couple of instances:
- When there's a plan amendment that affects rates. This could be something like adding a shiny new benefit or boosting up the dental maximum - exciting stuff!
- During that special time of year - renewal! Rates might see a little change at each annual renewal. This could be due to things like your group's claims experience, shifts in demographics, and other factors.
Making it a habit to keep an eye on benefits and payroll statements is a great way to spot any changes in employee profiles, guarantee the accuracy of billing statements, and quickly amend any potential problems.
By staying on top of these statements, plan administrators can tackle life events, policy changes, and renewal adjustments with ease. It also makes sure that payroll matches up perfectly with any deductions or taxable benefits.