For organizations like pension plans and insurance companies, sending just one mailing is a time consuming and costly effort. Now, multiply that by how many monthly/quarterly statements and required mailings are sent during the year. This is a huge burden on administrative teams. Not just the sending of the mail, but all the additional steps in handling any returned mail. It’s takes time to track down a missing participant or policyholder as there is no single source to find someone’s current address. If returned mail isn’t properly handled, the problem escalates. Taking steps to avoid returned mail before it starts is a smart move to reduce returned mail.
The Need to Proactively Update Addresses
It is estimated that 1 in 8 move each year. You can’t rely on individuals to self-report with their address changes. Instead, make it a priority to take a proactive approach so you can be confident the important documents you’re sending are making it to the correct person. This will reduce the risk of fraud and should lower the amount of returned mail pieces you have to handle. It’s a win-win for all parties.
Choosing a Proactive Address Locator Service
A proactive approach involves hiring a service to help update addresses. No two address locater services are alike. Many provide unconfirmed updates that are just matching your participants/policyholders up against commercial databases or credit reporting agency information. While this approach will provide some benefit of updating addresses, returned mail should still be expected as data is not confirmed.
Instead, opt for an address updating service that goes the extra mile in confirming addresses with individuals. This would involve mailing or calling individuals to get confirmation of their address. It may also include running a death audit or using other in-house independent data sources to aid in the missing participant/policyholder search.
Addresses Must be Updated Regularly
Addresses within a population need to be updated frequently. With approximately 12% of the population moving each year, that means your data could also be impacted as much within a years’ time.
That’s why we developed CertiCensus. It is a simple, complete and proactive solution for identifying those who have gone missing. CertiCensus searches for missing participants/policyholders four times a year through extensive search efforts that include mailings and phone calls. The search effort includes identifying decedents and, if necessary, potential beneficiaries. The CeritiCensus search process helps you align with industry regulations for finding missing participants/policyholders and provides detailed reporting on each individual.
In addition, CertiCensus can manage the entire mailing process for an annual required mailing such as an Annual Funding Notice (AFN). This helps reduce the administrative burden on a mailing along with assisting in additional mailings by providing updated addresses.
To learn more about CertiCensus contact us or watch our recorded webinar here.
