We are The Benefit Plan Auditors.
And that’s also what we do. We are an accounting firm dedicated to providing audits of benefit plans. We focus on the following values to set ourselves apart from other accounting firms:
Expertise | Methodology | Technology | Competitive Pricing
Expertise – Employee benefit plans are very different from other types of financial statement audits. These audits are governed by a myriad of fast-changing regulations issued by the IRS, DOL, ERISA, and the Social Security Administration. In addition, all audits must comply with the rules of the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and AICPA. This type of knowledge is hard to come by. We have years of experience auditing all types of plans. As a result, we perform a quality, efficient audit.
In addition to year-round experience we receive auditing benefit plans, we conduct CPE training annually directly related to employee benefit plans.
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/publications/selectinganauditor.html) stresses the importance of having auditors with experience with benefit plans.
Should a plan auditor have experience in auditing employee benefit plans?
One of the most common reasons for deficient accountants’ reports is the failure of the auditor to perform tests in areas unique to employee benefit plan audits. The more training and experience that an auditor has with employee benefit plan audits, the more familiar the auditor will be with benefit plan practices and operations, as well as the special auditing standards and rules that apply to such plans.
Expertise in employee benefit plans is important, not only to protect the plan’s assets but also to protect your company from potential penalties that result from deficient audit reports. The AICPA’s Employee Benefit Plan Audit Quality Center states the following with respect to the importance of a quality plan audit
The Importance of a Quality Plan Audit
A quality audit will help protect the assets and the financial integrity of your employee benefit plan and ensure that the necessary funds will be available to pay retirement, health, and other promised benefits to your employees. The higher the quality of a plan’s financial statement audit, the more reliable the information used to manage and administer the plan. A quality audit also will help you carry out your legal responsibility to file a complete and accurate annual return/report for your plan each year. As such, selection of an experienced and reliable auditor is very important.
ERISA holds plan administrators responsible for ensuring that plan financial statements are properly audited in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards (GAAS). There is a significant amount of risk to plan sponsors associated with the audits of their ERISA plans. Recent DOL studies of audit quality have identified significant deficiencies in plan audits. Accordingly, the DOL has dramatically increased and revised its enforcement strategies with respect to audit deficiencies. The penalties for such audit failures can be substantial. The DOL can assess penalties on plan sponsors of up to $1,100 a day (capped at $50,000) per annual report filing where the required auditor’s report is missing or deficient. Plan sponsors should make the selection of the plan auditor a high priority and exercise due care during every phase of the auditor selection process.
We keep all of our clients up-to-date with regulatory changes throughout the year to ensure that you stay in compliance. And should you need other pension-related services, we have relationships with investment advisors, lawyers, third-party administrators - so you’ll always have the expertise you need.
Efficient methodology – Benefit plans are our only business; they are not “filler work” or side business. We do them year round and we have developed the proprietary tools and checklists to complete the audit efficiently while at the same time meeting the myriad of regulatory requirements.
Audit in weeks, not months! – Our efficient methodology allows us to complete the audit in a short period, typically 4-6 weeks from start to finish. Typically we have 2 in-person meetings over the course of the audit, a planning meeting and a wrap-up meeting.
Our firm has a well-established process for new clients. We know the requirements inside and out, so we only request the documents that we need. We have relationships with the major third party administrators and we obtain most of the information we need directly from them to keep your time investment to a minimum. A short checklist of documents is all we need to begin.
The following is our standard timeline from the onset to the completion of the audit.
Week 1
Obtain signed engagement letter
Provide a short list of required plan documents (first year only)
Meeting 1 - Planning meeting to understand your processes
Complete risk assessment and control strength procedures
Obtain and review SAS 70 reports from your service providers
Request record keeper and custodian documents / certifications
Week 2
Complete trial balance and preliminary analytical review
Pick samples for testing of transactions
Week 3-4
Obtain documents from record keeper and complete testing (To maximize efficiency, we perform dual testing to test the effectiveness of your internal controls and provide our primary source of assurance)
Provide draft financial statements
Meeting 2 - Audit wrap-up meeting / phone conference
Week 4-5
Obtain management representation letter
Issue financial statements
Provide Management Report, including general recommendations, required communications, compliance issues and internal control improvements.
Use of Technology - Documents can be provided electronically. This allows us to communicate with you with flexibility and responsiveness. Our firm is completely paperless and secure. This enables us to provide documents and information to you quickly and easily.
Competitive pricing - Our streamlined process has allowed us to complete our work faster and to keep our prices competitive. We find that our fees are comparable to or less than those charged by other firms. However we also find that we can save you on the internal costs to your people in complying with the audit requirement by substantially reducing their time and energy to audit your company's Plan.
In this day and age, all companies are looking for innovative cost saving measures. What we can offer is the best of both worlds! A lower-price combined with increased productivity, expertise and service. Contact us today to get started.
The Benefit Plan Auditors
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The Benefit Plan Auditors
5201 West Kennedy Boulevard
Suite 620
Tampa, Florida 33609
Office: (813) 286-1120
Office: (813) 240-6115