Employer Refusing to Refund Health Insurance Premium

[matter2003]

I live and work in New York State.

Basically I was able to procure cheaper health insurance from New york State for my daughter(3 years old), and notified my employer with an insurance change form with proof of coverage. Since I already have paid the majority of September's premium including her coverage, I was expecting to get a refund of the overage I have already paid. They stated they do not refund premium's and that I would not be getting any money back.

In my mind, that is basically stealing money from me. I have already paid for something I will not be using in advance, and have not used it yet. Is there any recourse to recover my premium overages that I have already paid for? Its almost $200, and I don't see how they can justify keeping that money. Its not September yet, and notified them of the change prior to coverage taking effect in September.

Any advice?

[PattyPA]

If the premiums were deducted pre-tax, the cannot refund them, nor even lower your deduction going forward until the next open enrollment period. The IRS rules on 125 plans are VERY strict on this issue. Being able to get coverage for a lower amount is not generally a "life event" that would allow you to change coverage and reduce your contributions accordingly, under a 125 plan.

[cbg]

Qualifying for other coverage and enrolling in it can be considered a Life Event; however, the plan document of the existing policy will determine whether coverage will end on the exact date that the new policy begins or on the last day of the month in which the change takes place. Both are legal, both are common, and whichever one is determined by the plan document is set in STONE. If the plan document says that coverage on the old plan ends on the last day of the month, then it ends on the last day of the month; that is the final answer; and since the terms are available to any employee who cares to look, it cannot be considered stealing since you had access to the information ahead of time.

This is in addition to the regs regarding pre-tax refunds that Patty mentioned, and which she is more qualified to discuss than I.