Well CRUD - No-one Can Mess Up Like Calamity Can

[Calamity Kris]

I contacted the 401K holder from my previous company.  I wanted to change the mix of items in my 401K, since my retirement WAS on the horizon.  What the clown did instead was cash out my 401K and try to corner me into an annuity.  When I said no way dude, reverse this, he said it can't happen.  I'm stuck.  I now have no 401K, no pension and I was slightly more than a month before retirement.  Uno is ready to divorce me over this mess.  "How could you let yourself get scammed like this?" "You're such an idiot.".............  This has me so upset I'm shaking.  

 

Moral of the story, don't mess up like Calamity............

 

Please pray for me.  I could surely use some divine guidance to get through this.
 

[Subdeacon Joe]

Sounds like you need to contact an attorney. 

[El Sobrante Kid]

Work your way up the admin ladder at the 401K account management until you get someone who cares. Unless you requested this change with a signature, either written, electronic, or recorded voice, I think you will be OK... eventually. Good Luck!

[Stump Water]

Once you "cash out" of a 401K you have sixty days to roll the funds into another qualified retirement account.

 

I recommend you get that ball rolling by setting up an account at Vanguard.

[Rye Miles #13621]

11 minutes ago, Subdeacon Joe said:

Sounds like you need to contact an attorney. 

This ^^^^^^ 

[Brock]

UNDO UNDO UNDO

 

So old 401k is holding the funds or sending you a check?  I recommend the 'new retirement acccount" Option.

11 minutes ago, Stump Water said:

Once you "cash out" of a 401K you have sixty days to roll the funds into another qualified retirement account.

 

I recommend you get that ball rolling by setting up an account at Vanguard.

 

[Rip Snorter]

If you have an Executive you worked with that you trust at your old place I would try contacting them with the story and asking that they "carry the ball' for you.  If you did not request and authorize it, they are on the hook.  I did well with Vanguard as well, and still have some.  Best of luck!

[Stump Water]

31 minutes ago, Stump Water said:

Once you "cash out" of a 401K you have sixty days to roll the funds into another qualified retirement account.

 

I should have added... before you are subject to tax.  And penalty if you're not 59 1/2 y/o yet.

[Eyesa Horg]

🙏 Prayers Up Calamity🙏

 

A few months ago when we got into our dilemma, we had to move Roth IRA's to Schwab. It was a reasonable process on the phone. The next day we get an email telling us that the transfer had been executed and showed the acct. number. Well the number was for our regular IRA, not the Roth!

Rut-Roh

Called and got told the same thing! They couldn't help but admitted they screwed up, but they can't just open a Roth now without the tax implications!

"Say What"!!!

Hours on the phone to get 3 levels up the ladder and a really helpful lady called and took the blame for her depts. error. She explained once our conversation was more social, that it was a representative 2 level below her that just typed in the wrong acct. number. And she assured us it would be taken care of but that it was a major process starting with stopping the transfer of monies. Three days later she called and said it was all fixed and the transfer should happen in a few more days. It did, phew!!!

[Calamity Kris]

2 hours ago, Brock said:

UNDO UNDO UNDO

 

So old 401k is holding the funds or sending you a check?  I recommend the 'new retirement acccount" Option.

 

 

The old account had several different types of investments. bonds, stocks, indexes etc.  I was receiving a monthly 401K retirement check from them.  It wasn't much but it was something.  The purpose for contacting the firm was to change out some of the things I was holding in that account.  For example, I had some Boeing stock.  I wanted out of that and into something else like SPDRs. That was my only intent for talking to them.

 

The funds are currently sitting in an account that doesn't have a defined purpose yet.  In other words, I haven't selected stocks/funds/bonds/annuities etc to put the money against.  

 

I left him a voice mail yesterday telling him what I wanted to do.  I had a missed call but no VM when I got off work today.  I left a message with their exchange again today asking him to call  me back.  If I don't hear anything when I get off work tomorrow afternoon , I'm going to start screaming up the chain of command until I get someone to work with me.

[Calamity Kris]

2 hours ago, Stump Water said:

 

I should have added... before you are subject to tax.  And penalty if you're not 59 1/2 y/o yet.

 

 I'm well above 59 1/2.  Thanks for asking.

[Stump Water]

8 minutes ago, Calamity Kris said:

The old account had several different types of investments. bonds, stocks, indexes etc.  I was receiving a monthly 401K retirement check from them.  It wasn't much but it was something.  The purpose for contacting the firm was to change out some of the things I was holding in that account.  For example, I had some Boeing stock.  I wanted out of that and into something else like SPDRs. That was my only intent for talking to them.

 

The funds are currently sitting in an account that doesn't have a defined purpose yet.  In other words, I haven't selected stocks/funds/bonds/annuities etc to put the money against.  

 

Ok.  So it sounds like you haven't "cashed out" of your 401K.   That's good.  

 

Goober just pulled out of all of your investments and put the money into a "holding" account... probably making next to nothing.  

 

I'm not used to dealing with a human as I've selected what I wanted to invest in (from the list of what's available) with my 401K for many years.  Do it all online. 

 

That said, I'm getting ready to roll my 401K out to my "401K rollover account" at Vanguard.  Again, a holding account.  Once it's there I can invest the money in whatever I want to, myself.

 

Figure out what you need to do to roll the money out to Vanguard (or Schwab, or Fidelity, or, or, or...) so you're in control and there's no "broker" or "dude" making the transactions.

[Forty Rod SASS 3935]

CONTACT THE U. S. SECURITY AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION.

 

When I was in the business of life insurance and investments  the most frightening thing we could hear is "I'm going to contact the SEC.  Even if they didn't find anything wrong on your parts it messed up you life for a period...a period where the"pucker factor" ran well over the 100% mark.

 

And, yes, talk to an attorney.  Many specialize in this sort of thing.

 

Pull out all stops and don't be "the nice guy"  Fight dirty.

Edited September 18 by Forty Rod SASS 3935

[watab kid]

2 hours ago, Forty Rod SASS 3935 said:

CONTACT THE U. S. SECURITY AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION.

 

When I was in the business of life insurance and investment business the most frightening thing we could hear is "I'm going to contact the SEC.  Even if the didn't find anything wrong on your parts it messed up you life for a period...a period where the"pucker factor" ran well over the 100% mark.

 

And, yes, talk to an attorney.  Many specialize in this sort of thing.

 

Pull out all stops and don't be "the nice guy"  Fight dirty.

and its worth moving quickly , you dont need any tax or penalty over this , 

[El Sobrante Kid]

15 hours ago, watab kid said:

and its worth moving quickly , you dont need any tax or penalty over this , 

 

THIS^^^^^^! Do not wait, do not give them a chance to think about it, do not (ever) assume they will "do the right thing. Get on the phone NOW and work your way up the management ladder. Do not yell, scream, or cry. Tell each supervisor as you ascend the ladder that you left a voice mail and the yutz associate did the WRONG thing to your account without your permission. GL!

[Calamity Kris]

4:15PM.

 

I just got off the phone with the first level supervisor.  He was actually very helpful.  He documented the situation, contacted a couple of other departments and I am to expect a call from the next level supervisor any minute.  I do have a name and number for this person so if they don't call back promptly, I know who to call and have a number to do so.  

 

He did record our conversation and said I was "led astray".  He apologized and said someone would get back to me soon.

[Dapper Dave]

Good luck, ma'am, and enjoy your well deserved retirement once you get this hammered out. I am NO expert in any kind of financial laws, just a dumb turnkey, but I second the attorney if they don't fix it, AND give you complete written documentation of the fix, AND reimburse you for lost interest and payments. 

[Calamity Kris]

4:30PM

 

Apparently someone leaked to the putz that I called.  He calls me back starting with "oh I'm so glad I was able to reach you.  Are you ready to re-allocate your funds...." I gave him a white lie and told him I needed to run.  I would call if I needed his services.....

 

 

5:20PM

 

Received a call from the branch manager.  He introduced himself and said he wanted to hear the story from me.  I told him what had sparked my contacting the firm in the first place and what my original intentions were.  When I got to the part where my 401K was gone, he said "oh my, you weren't expecting that were you?" "I can understand where that would be a real shock." He then explained legally what they can do. 

 

1) There is no way LEGALLY to restore the account, since I'm no longer employed with the company where the account was created.  (I looked it up.  He's correct.)

2) My pension, while it's well hidden, is still there.  That wasn't touched.

3) There are no tax implications nor penalties since I didn't REMOVE the money from the firm.  If I had done that, it would have been a whole 'nother issue.

4) At this point, I have two options; A-Keep the funds in the IRA they are currently sitting in and have it mimic the distributions I had selected in the old 401K, or  B- Roll the funds over to the 401K I have with my current employer and make any necessary changes there.

5) There will be no fees or penalties.  This is entirely on them.

 

He spent 45 minutes of his time walking me through everything and asked me what I wanted to do from here.  We talked through a few options and decided he would have one of his senior advisors call me tomorrow and get into more details on the options.  

 

He closed by profusely apologizing for the bad employee and said he would have at least one conversation with him because the way he treated me was against their ethos and training.  He thanked me for my time and said he hopes to meet me one day at the local office.

 

I feel quite relieved with all this new info.  Hopefully, we can make the new distribution of the funds better than they were before.  

[Buckshot Bear]

23 hours ago, Calamity Kris said:

 

 Well CRUD - No-one Can Mess Up Like Calamity Can

 

Hold my beer

[watab kid]

7 hours ago, El Sobrante Kid said:

 

THIS^^^^^^! Do not wait, do not give them a chance to think about it, do not (ever) assume they will "do the right thing. Get on the phone NOW and work your way up the management ladder. Do not yell, scream, or cry. Tell each supervisor as you ascend the ladder that you left a voice mail and the yutz associate did the WRONG thing to your account without your permission. GL!

excellent advice , as is mentioning the contacting the SEC , 

[Eyesa Horg]

Best wishes continue Calamity🙏🤞👍