Fiduciary duty and litigation

Benefits chatbots and ERISA estoppel exposure

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Something I’ve been thinking about: benefits chatbots and ERISA estoppel exposure.

Estoppel is narrow, and most claims lose. But it doesn’t require intent. It requires a misrepresentation a participant reasonably relies on, plus extraordinary circumstances.

A chatbot branded with the plan’s name, answering in a confident voice, gives the same wrong answer to everyone who asks, for as long as the error persists. Is that extraordinary? Unclear today.

SPD disclaimers help. Disclaimers buried under a “start chat” button might be different.

For those of you with AI in your benefits stack: what are you seeing as mitigation?

Originally posted on LinkedIn, where the discussion and source links live in the comments.

About the author

Chris Vanderwolk is Director of Compliance and Innovation at OneDigital | Kistler Tiffany Benefits General Agency, where he helps brokers and employers navigate the regulatory complexity of employee benefits. An ERISA attorney with more than 19 years in the benefits industry, he specializes in translating what the law actually requires into language people can use.

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