Claims and Appeal Procedures

Claims Procedure

You, your beneficiaries after your death or any individual duly authorized by you have the right under ERISA and the Plan to file a written claim for benefits under the Plan by writing to the Plan Administrator at the address provided in Administrative Information. You, your beneficiaries after your death or your authorized representatives are referred to as the “Claimant.” However, before a Claimant can file a claim for benefits due to fraudulent activity that is the result of incidents that include (but are not limited to) unauthorized activity, account compromise, loss of an access device, identity theft, or other cybersecurity threats to the Claimant’s account (each a “Security Incident” and, collectively, “Security Incidents”), the Claimant must first seek recovery under any protection or recovery program, such as the Fidelity Customer Protection Guarantee, intended to cover such losses that are offered by the Plan’s third-party recordkeeper. If the Claimant’s claim for recoupment of Plan benefits under a protection or recovery program is denied, then a claim may be filed under the Plan.

Under ERISA, a claim is a request for benefits under a plan. Under the Plan, a casual inquiry regarding eligibility requirements or a casual inquiry about Plan benefits is not treated as a claim and is not subject to these claim and appeal procedures.

If the Plan Administrator denies the Claimant’s claim in whole or in part, the Claimant will be notified in writing ordinarily within 90 days after the claim is filed. However, this deadline may be extended for up to an additional 90 days because of special circumstances. If an extension to this deadline is required, you will be notified in writing in advance of the original deadline of the reasons for the delay. The extension notice will indicate the special circumstances requiring an extension of time and the date by which the Plan Administrator expects to render the benefit determination.

The notification of your claim denial will include:

• The reason for the denial;
• The specific Plan provisions on which the denial was based;
• A description of any additional information needed to process your claim;
• An explanation of the claim review procedure;
• A statement of the time limitations applicable to the claims procedures; and
• A statement of the Claimant’s right to bring a civil action under Section 502(d) of ERISA if the claim is appealed and the appeal is fully or partially denied.