Ask Our Experts
By: Source: AARP Bulletin Today Date Posted: 2004-11-19 14:10:00-05:00
The AARP Bulletin's Ask Our Experts column provides answers to important questions affecting older Americans. Read below for this month's column, or review our archive of previously published questions and answers sorted by topic. (Note: Recent news or changes to regulations may affect the guidance offered in this previously published column.)
Submit your own question to the Ask Our Experts column via our easy-to-use online form.
Q. I left a company in 1990 after I was vested in its pension plan—but my copies of my pension records were destroyed in a fire. I don't remember the name of the plan, and the company was sold and has moved out of state. How can I locate my pension?
It's up to the employee to track down a lost pension, but there are a number of places to go for help:
- Contact the Social Security Administration to get a copy of your earnings records, which will include your former employer's federal ID number. You may be able to use that number to locate the company and apply for the benefit.
- The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation , which insures most private-sector plans, helps employees search for lost pensions through its website. Download its booklet (PDF) on the subject.
- The U.S. Labor Department provides limited assistance to workers searching for lost pensions through the Employee Benefits Security Administration's Division of Technical Assistance and Inquiries , located in Washington and 15 field offices.
- The nonprofit Pension Rights Center in Washington also offers assistance. — Expertise provided by John Turner
Q. Can you tell me about the necklaces that can be worn in case of an emergency?
There are many providers of personal emergency response systems (PERS), electronic devices that let you summon help in an emergency. You wear the device, which is a buttonlike radio transmitter, on a necklace, wristband or belt, or in a pocket. When you press the button, it sends a radio signal to a console connected to your telephone. The console automatically dials preselected emergency telephone numbers.
Most of the systems are programmed to call an emergency response center, where staffers assess the situation and send emergency personnel to the caller's home. Not all systems work in all areas, however. It is important to find out how the system can be tested in and around your home.
Fees for installation and monthly monitoring vary. If you don't know how well a service will work for you, avoid signing long-term contracts.
For more information on PERS, go to the Federal Trade Commission's website. For a free brochure, call the FTC toll-free at (877) 382-4357.—Expertise provided by Marc Freiman
Q. Is there a central place to find out if my wife's grandmother, who is 101, has life insurance? No one in the family can find proof of coverage because of several moves and lost paperwork.
No, there is no central repository for life insurance policyholders. After a policy reaches maturity, usually when the policyholder turns 100, the insurance company will send a notification to the insured's last known address. If the money is not claimed, it goes to the state's unclaimed funds division in her name.
It may be worthwhile to go through her old checkbooks and receipts for evidence of paid premiums.
Finally, if a company insures her home, she may have purchased life insurance from the same agent.—Expertise provided by Sally Hurme
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