This edited article from USA Today illustrates the importance of beneficiary designation forms: A Widow’s Tale of Woe. Every person with an IRA, a 401k, or a corporate retirement plan needs to take the following steps to ensure their plan benefits will be timely and correctly paid to their plan beneficiaries:
- Make certain their beneficiary designations are up to date;
- Make certain they have copies of their current beneficiary designations;
- Make certain their retirement plan administrators have acknowledged receiving copies of their current beneficiary designations;
- Make certain they have destroyed all of their outdated beneficiary designations; and
- Make certain their beneficiaries will be able to access their retirement plan benefits in a timely manner.
No one would want to leave their family members in the predicament faced by Mrs. Laesk.
