What a joke. Ever seen those shows on tv, i.e. 'American Greed'? Similar. I have the tiniest amount in a 401k plan and I am no longer with the company.. therefore I need a disbursement. If you would like access to your own money within a reasonable time frame, I'd think again! First off, while I was a participant in the 401k plan for over 2-3 years, I would receive my quarterly statements. I was never given online log in info but the statements came consistently. The envelope says Mercer Advisors but the papers inside never have. The paper simply said the name of the employer and then my name with my full social security number typed out. On the cover page and paper they have not printed the name Mercer Advisors anywhere and they do not even have a phone number listed. I had to google the phone number, which was a disconnected number and finally I found a 1800 number to call. Anyway, I parted ways with my employer over 3 months ago and hadn't heard from Mercer. No problem, it's my responsibility anyway so I contacted them initially to get a disbursement. The person told me that they'd look into my account and give me a call back. That was a Thursday, I waited until the following Monday and then called again. I was told that they were waiting for a call back from their pension department and they'd call me back (even if they didn't hear from them) by the end of the day to let me know. No call. Needless to say, I'm a little concerned due to the fact that they can't follow through with phone calls but yet they have my hard earned money?? I called again the next day specifically to another number hoping not to get the same person. The woman that I spoke with told me that, ""Pension is swamped right now!!"". First off, I don't really care how busy this is, it's their job and I'm the customer. Then she takes down my email since it will be easier for them (!) to communicate that way so I obliged. I did get a prompt email back from the same person I'd been dealing with and he told me that I need to request a disbursement (he thinks) by logging in online. I followed his instructions and clicked every single tab and button on the website but couldn't find any section to request a disbursement. I emailed him back to let him know and he responds saying that apparently that version of their program doesn't allow participants to do disbursements. He tells me to call the pension center phone number (a 888 number) to request it myself. I have called multiple times and the phone number rings twice and then has a voice recording that says to leave your name and number and someone will return your call. In true Mercer fashion, I've left multiple messages without receiving any calls back. Sketchy??
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