Finding a Lost Pension

In a limited range of cases, PBGC provides a possible short cut to finding your lost pension. These are cases in which:

	you had a defined benefit pension plan that closed down after July 1, 1974 (a defined benefit pension plan provides a specific periodic benefit, usually monthly, at retirement and generally is based on salary or stated dollar amount and years of service); and
	the sponsor of your plan was a private company that was not a religious organization and was not a professional office (lawyers, doctors, architects, etc.) that employed fewer than 25 persons. The PBGC will not be able to help if your plan was paid for only by union dues or was administered by a government agency.

You can access (or have someone else access for you) a World Wide Web computer site maintained by PBGC (http://search.pbgc.gov). As of early 1999, PBGC’s computerized directory listed about 8,400 individuals who had pensions waiting for them. Those without computer access may write to the PBGC Pension Search Program, 1200 K Street NW, Suite 930, Washington, DC 20005- 4026.

You needn’t be intimidated by the high technology involved. A librarian at your local public library should be able to find the site and look for the information within a matter of minutes. You (or someone else) can simply type in your last name to find out whether you are on a list of “lost” beneficiaries of pensions that have been taken over by PBGC. You can also type in the company’s name to see if its pension plan has been taken over by PBGC.