Why structure, transparency, and documented oversight now matter more than “industry standard” design.
Recent litigation initiated by Schlichter Bogard has brought new attention to the voluntary benefits market. While the headlines may feel abrupt, the underlying shift is not. Voluntary benefits are beginning to face the same fiduciary questions that reshaped retirement plans years ago.
The focus is not intent. It is structure.
Employers and advisors are increasingly being evaluated on whether voluntary benefits programs are designed and governed in a way that aligns with participants’ best interests, particularly around transparency, compensation, and claims ratios.
What is changing
Historically, voluntary benefits were viewed as lower risk because premiums are employee-paid. That assumption is now being tested. Courts are examining whether employers exercised appropriate prudence in selecting, monitoring, and documenting these programs.
The question increasingly being asked: Why was this structure used when better-aligned alternatives existed?
Why “industry standard” is no longer enough
Many traditional voluntary benefits arrangements evolved around embedded compensation and limited visibility into program economics. Even when well-intended, these structures can be difficult to explain, document, or defend under fiduciary review.
This does not mean employers did something wrong. It means the market evolved faster than governance standards and expectations.
What prudent employers are doing now
Employers responding thoughtfully are focusing on:
- Clear, auditable compensation
- Transparency into premiums, claims, and expenses
- Ongoing monitoring and documentation
- Program designs that reduce conflicts rather than manage them after the fact
Why BeneRe exists
BeneRe was founded to address the structural challenges in voluntary benefits. Our model was built around transparency, efficiency, and alignment, with governance and documentation designed to support fiduciary oversight from the outset
Executive Brief
We created an Executive Brief to help employers understand what this moment means and how to evaluate voluntary benefits program structure through a fiduciary lens.
Read the Executive Brief:
Voluntary Benefits, ERISA Fiduciary Risk, and How BeneRe Solves the Structural Problem
A concise, expert-reviewed analysis designed to help employers understand recent ERISA developments and evaluate voluntary benefits program structure with confidence.