Commercial Insurance · Product Capability
Fiduciary (Erisa) Bond
If you handle funds for an employee benefit plan (a 401(k), pension, or welfare plan), federal law requires you to be bonded. Simpson | McCrady helps Pittsburgh-area plan administrators, CFOs, and HR directors meet DOL fidelity bond requirements with coverage right-sized for your plan's actual asset base and handler profile.
Why This Requires Expertise
ERISA Bonding Is a Federal Requirement, Not a Line Item to Estimate
Under ERISA Section 412, every plan official who 'handles' employee benefit plan funds (meaning anyone with physical custody, authority to disburse, or power to transfer assets) must be covered by a fidelity bond issued by a DOL-approved surety. The Department of Labor sets minimum bond amounts at 10% of plan assets handled in the prior year, with a floor of $1,000 and a ceiling of $500,000 for most plans. Plans holding employer securities face a higher ceiling of $1,000,000.
What makes this genuinely complex is not the math. It is the definition of 'handling.' DOL guidance on ERISA fidelity bonds makes clear that handling is broader than most plan sponsors assume: it can extend to investment committee members, third-party administrators with check-signing authority, and certain payroll personnel. Getting this wrong exposes plan fiduciaries to personal liability, DOL audit findings, and potential plan disqualification: consequences that fall on individuals, not just the plan.
Simpson | McCrady works with plan administrators and their benefits counsel to identify every individual who qualifies as a handler under DOL rules, confirm that the bond form and surety company meet federal acceptability standards, and ensure coverage is updated as the plan's asset base and personnel change. This is specialist work, not a generic commercial insurance add-on, and the difference is apparent the moment a DOL auditor reviews your files.
What We Cover
What Fiduciary (Erisa) Bond Covers
What This Coverage Includes
Column body loads from the CMS.
401(k) and Defined Contribution Plan Bonds
Fidelity bond coverage meeting ERISA Section 412 requirements for plan officials handling participant deferrals, employer contributions, and investment assets in defined contribution plans — the most common bond need for middle-market plan sponsors.
Defined Benefit and Pension Plan Bonds
Coverage for trustees, investment committee members, and administrators overseeing defined benefit pension plans, where asset values and handler complexity are typically higher and bond amounts must be carefully calculated against prior-year figures.
Health and Welfare Plan Bonds
ERISA fidelity bonding for plan officials who handle premium payments, flex spending accounts, and self-funded health plan reserves — plan types frequently overlooked but explicitly covered under DOL fidelity bond requirements.
Multiple-Employer Plan (MEP) Bonds
Bonding solutions for multiple-employer plans and pooled employer plans, where the handler determination spans participating employers and requires careful coordination to confirm compliant coverage for all plan officials across the arrangement.
Coverage Amount Determination and Right-Sizing
We calculate required bond amounts based on prior-year plan asset values, identify whether the employer securities threshold applies, and confirm coverage is neither under-purchased nor over-priced relative to actual DOL requirements.
Bond Renewals and Plan Change Reviews
ERISA fidelity bond requirements shift as plans grow, personnel turns over, and plan structures are amended. We conduct ongoing coverage reviews tied to your plan year to keep bond amounts current and compliant between DOL audits.
DOL-Approved Surety and Bond Form Compliance
Not every surety company or bond form meets DOL acceptability standards. We source ERISA bonds exclusively from Treasury-listed sureties and verify that bond language satisfies the “fraud or dishonesty” coverage requirement specified in DOL guidance.
Fiduciary Liability Insurance (Companion Coverage)
Distinct from the ERISA fidelity bond requirement, fiduciary liability insurance protects plan administrators against breach-of-duty claims from plan participants. We help plan sponsors understand the difference between the two exposures and address each appropriately.
Column body loads from the CMS.
Not Sure Your Current Coverage Goes Far Enough?
Our Approach
An Independent Broker Who Understands Plan Fiduciary Compliance
Simpson | McCrady is an independent brokerage, which means we are not aligned with any single carrier or surety and have no incentive to place your ERISA bond anywhere other than where it fits best. When we engage with a plan administrator or CFO on an ERISA fidelity bond, we begin by reviewing the plan documents and prior-year asset data to establish the correct bond amount under DOL rules. We then match that requirement against the broader market to identify a Treasury-listed surety offering the right combination of pricing, bond form language, and claims responsiveness.
Our carrier relationships across the commercial lines market run deep, and that access translates directly into better outcomes for middle-market plan sponsors, both in competitive pricing and in reaching surety companies that understand ERISA compliance rather than processing it as a commodity transaction. Being carrier-agnostic is not a differentiator we claim; it is the operating structure that makes genuine advocacy possible.
What separates us from transactional bond-placement services is what happens after the bond is issued. Plan assets grow. Plan administrators change. Employers add or drop benefit plans. Each of these events can trigger a change in bond requirement under ERISA Section 412. We build an ongoing compliance review into every client relationship, so the bond on file reflects the plan as it actually exists, not as it existed when the bond was first placed. That sustained advisory relationship, backed by more than 100 years as an independent Pittsburgh broker, is why plan administrators trust Simpson | McCrady not just with their ERISA bond but with the full commercial insurance program that protects their business.
Firm Credentials
The Depth Behind Your Coverage
Speak With an Advisor
Speak with a Trusted Advisor
One straightforward conversation is all it takes to understand where your coverage stands, and where it should be. Protecting Tomorrow Today.
Prefer to call? 412-261-2222
info@simpson-mccrady.com