Employee Benefits & Owner Benefits

An employee benefits review considers recruitment, retention, affordability, eligibility, and administration. Coverage choices should reflect the employee population and the firm's ability to maintain the program over time.

• Health coverage: review group coverage options, employer contributions, enrollment, and dependent access.
• Dental and vision: consider whether supplemental coverage supports workforce priorities.
• Group life insurance: assess employer-paid and voluntary options with clear benefit explanations.
• Disability protection: evaluate available income-replacement coverage, waiting periods, definitions, and benefit limits.
• Voluntary supplemental benefits: assess employee demand, cost, and how the coverage fits alongside the core program.

Group health and group life coverage are among the employee benefit categories described in NAIC's small-business insurance guidance.

Owners need a separate review because a workplace benefit may not match the financial consequences of their absence. Planning should distinguish protection for the owner or family from protection for the business.

• Personal disability income: review income needs, existing coverage, and the policy's definition of disability.
• Business overhead expense coverage: explore coverage for eligible operating expenses during a covered owner disability; this differs from personal income replacement.
• Life insurance: assess family and business objectives separately, with attention to policy ownership, beneficiaries, affordability, and duration.
• Key-person protection: review the business's financial exposure to losing an essential individual.
• Buy-sell funding: coordinate potential insurance funding with counsel's ownership agreement and the parties' obligations.

Who is the insured, who owns the policy, who pays the premium, and who receives a benefit? What event triggers payment? Are benefits intended for the family, the business, or an ownership purchase? These decisions should be aligned with the agreements and financial assumptions they are meant to support.

Employer-owned life insurance can involve specific tax reporting and compliance requirements. Tax advisers should review the arrangement before implementation; the IRS provides information on Form 8925 for employer-owned life insurance contracts.

1. Inventory current benefits, coverage, and administration.
2. Separate employee needs from owner and business needs.
3. Develop a budget and a coverage-review brief.
4. Coordinate specialist proposals and implementation responsibilities.
5. Set a renewal and periodic review calendar.

A benefits priorities summary, a current-coverage inventory, a specialist review checklist, and an implementation plan covering eligibility, communications, enrollment, and ongoing administration. Insurance underwriting, policy recommendations, quotations, and placement are handled by appropriately licensed professionals.

Bring a workforce summary, current plan descriptions, contribution amounts, policy schedules, and the owner's continuity objectives. A structured review helps the business evaluate the total cost and purpose of the program rather than selecting products in isolation.