We all know that when we make a mistake, it’s best that we correct them. Yet too many plan sponsors take a gamble by not self-correcting errors made in their plan. They play what we call the audit gamble, gambling that the government won’t be auditing the plan so the error never has to be corrected. I don’t gamble and as an ERISA attorney, I always tell my clients that it’s not a gamble worth the risk.
Errors can be corrected through a self-correction program which has been expanded and there is also a voluntary compliance program to take care of larger errors. Whichever program you choose, it’s better to correct through self-correction than an open audit.