Qualities to Look for in a Plan Auditor

The Department of Labor’s Employee Benefit Security Administration provides material intended to assist plan administrators in selecting a plan auditor. This includes qualities that a plan auditor should have.

Q. Is a plan auditor required to be licensed or certified? Independent? Possessor of experience in auditing employee benefit plans?

A. Federal law requires that an auditor engaged for an employee benefit plan audit be licensed or certified as a public accountant by a state regulatory authority.

Auditors of employee benefit plans should be independent in that they should not have any financial interests in the plan or the plan sponsor that would affect their ability to render an objective, unbiased opinion about the financial condition of the plan.

One of the most common reasons for deficient 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 them, 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.