Do You Have Concerns About Your 401(k) Plan Fees or How Your Plan Is Being Managed?

Your 401(k) is supposed to help you build retirement savings. But concerns about plan fees, the selection and monitoring of plan investments, service-provider relationships, or potential conflicts of interest may raise questions about how your retirement plan is being managed.

Federal law requires 401(k) plan fiduciaries to act prudently and in the interests of plan participants, including when selecting and monitoring investments, service providers, and plan expenses.

What 401(k) Participants Should Watch For

Investment performance or the amount of a particular fee, standing alone, does not establish that a 401(k) plan fiduciary violated the law. Participants may nevertheless have questions about whether their plan’s investments and service providers are being prudently selected and monitored and whether plan fees and expenses are reasonable.

Issues 401(k) participants may want to consider include:

• Recordkeeping or administrative fees and whether those costs are being appropriately monitored;
• Investment options with persistent performance or cost concerns and whether those investments are being prudently monitored;
• Plan investments or service-provider arrangements that may involve potential conflicts of interest;
• Financial products or services being marketed to participants through the plan’s recordkeeper; or
• Whether the plan’s investment and service-provider arrangements are being periodically evaluated.

The U.S. Department of Labor explains that 401(k) fiduciaries must use a prudent process to select investments and service providers, ensure plan expenses are reasonable in light of the services provided, and continue monitoring those choices.

A Recent 401(k) Case Shows Why These Issues Matter

A recent settlement involving the Liberty Mutual 401(k) Plan illustrates several of these concerns. On September 9, 2026, a federal court in Massachusetts granted final approval of a settlement resolving an Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”) class action concerning the management, operation, and administration of the plan. The settlement does not mean the court found that Liberty Mutual violated ERISA.

According to Law360, the plan participants alleged that Liberty Mutual failed to monitor the plan’s recordkeeping costs, resulting in fees that were at least double what comparable plans were being charged. Law360 also reported that the participants alleged Liberty Mutual retained several funds in the plan to improve its business relationships with other financial institutions and drive revenue for the company, even though other investment options would have provided better returns.

Law360 also reported that, in addition to the $13.4 million monetary settlement, Liberty Mutual agreed for three years to direct its plan recordkeeper to avoid soliciting 401(k) participants for cross-selling proprietary products and to conduct a request for proposal for investment and administrative consulting services.

For 401(k) participants generally, the case highlights an important point: fiduciary oversight is not limited to investment returns. It can also involve fees, service-provider relationships, potential conflicts, and whether plan arrangements are being periodically evaluated.

What You Can Check in Your Own 401(k)

You do not need to know every detail of ERISA to start looking at your plan. Review your account statements and annual fee disclosures and consider:

• What administrative or recordkeeping fees are being deducted from your account?
• What expense ratios or other fees apply to the investments you hold?
• What information does your plan provide about the performance, fees, and expenses of its investment options?
• Has your recordkeeper or another plan provider marketed additional investment, insurance, rollover, or advisory products to you?
• Have the plan’s fees, investments, or service providers changed over time?

Keep copies of account statements, fee disclosures, investment materials, and communications from the plan or its service providers. Those records may help show how fees, investments, and provider relationships have changed over time.

Questions About Your 401(k) Plan?

If you have concerns about your 401(k) plan’s fees, the selection or monitoring of plan investments, recordkeeping costs, service providers, or potential conflicts of interest, contact Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. to learn more about your potential rights under ERISA.

Michael Yarnoff, Esq., (215) 792-6676, Ext. 804
[email protected]
[email protected]

About Kehoe Law Firm, P.C.

Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. is a nationally recognized, plaintiff-side class action law firm representing investors, consumers, and employees in matters involving securities fraud, corporate misconduct, mergers and acquisitions, antitrust violations, whistleblower claims, data breaches, consumer fraud, employment law violations, and retirement-plan mismanagement. Its attorneys have served as lead or co-lead counsel in major securities cases, recovering more than $10 billion for institutional and individual investors.

Kehoe Law Firm’s class action legal services are provided on a contingency-fee basis, meaning plaintiffs are not responsible for attorneys’ fees or litigation expenses. Any request for attorneys’ fees and expenses will be subject to court approval.

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