Signs of an unhealthy plan

When it comes to your health, there are certain symptoms you should look out for that could be a harbinger of something wrong. The same can be said of your 401(k) plan. Here are some things to consider:

1. Late deposit of salary deferrals.
2. Low average account balances.
3. No ERISA bond in place.
4. Low deferral participation rate.
5. Compliance testing failures, corrective contributions made.
6. Too many hardship requests.
7. Too many defaulted plan loans.
8. No benchmarking of fees.
9. No review of plan providers.
10. No formal fiduciary process followed.

If you just have one of these symptoms, your plan needs a checkup.