Read how billing variances accumulate — breakdown in NAPEO PEO Insider Magazine
Tabulera client analysis shows employers overpay 0.79–1.3% of total premium when reconciling monthly. This comes from two sources:
Rate differentials — the invoice doesn't match what it should be. Wrong rates, tier mismatches, ineligible dependents, wrong plan assignments, missed life events.
Missed terminations — terminated employees who remain on carrier invoices until someone catches it. More turnover and less frequent reconciliation = more exposure.
Turnover rates are sourced from BLS JOLTS Table 20 (2024 annual average monthly separation rates). Since JOLTS reports monthly rates, we annualize using compound probability: Annual rate = 1 − (1 − r)12, where r is the monthly separation rate. This accounts for the fact that employees who leave in one month cannot leave again, avoiding the overstatement that simple multiplication (r × 12) would produce.
Both scale with how often you reconcile. Less frequent = more errors accumulate. More invoices and (for outsourcers) more client companies add a small complexity uplift.
The less often you reconcile, the longer errors go undetected on carrier invoices. Based on Tabulera client data, the average detection lag by frequency is:
Monthly: ~0.4 months — errors are caught within the current billing cycle, but some slip to the next month.
Quarterly: ~1.0 month — errors accumulate for several weeks before the next review.
Never / Ad-Hoc: ~2.0 months — without a regular process, errors persist until someone happens to notice them.
Error rates also increase with less frequent reconciliation, as billing discrepancies and eligibility mismatches compound over time without correction.
For outsourcers managing multiple client companies, there is an additional delay factor of 1.5× because terminations must flow from the client's HR team to the outsourcer before reaching the carrier.
We take your state's median HR/Benefits specialist wage, add 35% for payroll taxes and benefits, then multiply by reconciliation hours. We calculate with 33% as a conservative floor — Tabulera clients typically report a 75% increase in reconciliation speed.
| Data Point | Source | Date |
|---|---|---|
| HR/Benefits specialist wages by state | BLS OEWS — SOC 13-1141 | 2023 |
| Health premiums & enrollment by tier | AHRQ MEPS-IC 2024 | 2024 |
| Turnover rates by industry (compounded from monthly: 1−(1−r)12) | BLS JOLTS Table 20 | 2024 |
| Loaded labor cost multiplier | BLS ECEC | 2024 |
| Overpayment baseline & automation efficiency | Tabulera client analysis | 2024–25 |
This is an estimate. Actual savings depend on your plan design, carrier relationships, data quality, and process maturity.