Complaints

This profile includes complaints for Principal Financial Group's headquarters and its corporate-owned locations. To view all corporate locations, see Find Local Branches.

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• 

  Principal Financial Group

  711 High Street Des Moines, IA 50392-0001

  
• 

  Principal Financial Group

  4010 W Boy Scout Blvd Ste 700 Tampa, FL 33607

• 

  Principal Financial Group

  PO Box 22347 Tampa, FL 33622

• 

  Principal Financial Group

  10200 Innovation Suite 800 Milwaukee, WI 53226

• 

  Principal Financial Group

  221 E Franklin St. Appleton, WI 54911

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/28/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  My account was paid through a deduction and sent to Principal with out my involvement. It stopped deducting when loan was paid. There was some mix up on their end and they decided they needed one more payment which I have to leave work to go to a bank to get a cashiers check, because they can't take payment on the phone. I finally was able to leave work to do this and now they want to charge me an extra ***** for interest for their mistake. Which will cause me to leave work again to accommodate their rules I do not owe this interest and feel like they should remove this charge from my acct since this isn't my mistake.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 01/08/2024

  Thank you for forwarding. Principal will respond directly to the complainant

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/27/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I requested a rollover of my **************** retirement account at ******************************************* on November 21. I requested rollover paperwork which was made available and sent to my new financial advisor. They completed the forms and submitted them to Principal. After waiting several days with no response, I called for a status. It turns out they did not provide all of the rollover papers that we needed. They made that available, I submitted it to my new financial advisor, and it was completed, signed and forwarded to Principal. When I checked the status again, they told me they apologize for the delay. It would be a few days and my request was made on December 7 according to them, even though online the progress of my request still showed November 21. I created a log of my daily balances years ago for my retirement, even before it was at Principal. During this transition time, I checked at several times. The final balance was posted as of December 14 at $931,303.46. I was actually quite thrilled that they Were extremely slow with the rollover because I was able to take advantage of the market spike. After having to transparency with the transition, I finally found on December 24 around the rollover. They showed the rollover amount as $895,003.33. Minus a $19 fee they said they would charge for the rollover, that is $36,300.13 less than my last posted balance. I have not been able to get in touch with them for an answer, but, oddly enough, after sending them three online messages, yes, that is overkill, but I am super stressed about my missing money, I can mysteriously no longer access their site. After using the same sign on details for my entire tenure with this company, they are no longer working. supposedly they have responded to my note per the alert email I received in my regular email, but I cannot access it. It occurs to me that either there may be a second check coming, which I certainly hope that is the case or they have shorted me over $36,000 . *** looked at my records and I am wondering if they have retro my balance back to around December 7, one of the dates they say I made my request. If they actually started processing and pulled my account at that time. That would make sense to me. However, my account was not taken down from their site until December 15. According to the transaction details, that is a day they cut the check. My balance changed daily through December 14, which would indicate to me that my account was still invested in the market, and still earning money. That being the case, those earnings belong to me. This is not a managed account, so there is no commission or fees that should have come off of that other than the normal very low fees in the $19 rollover charge. Unless there are multiple checks, and again, I have no way of knowing that because there has been zero transparency with this transition, they have shorted me money, and I will not except that. If they had pulled my investments, and they were no longer earning or losing money, a new balance should not have been available every day. If the balance stayed the same for several days, I am smart enough that I wouldve assumed the money was no longer invested. That is not the case the balance was still showing up, and it was updating every day through December 14. Again they need to let me know where my $36,000+ is. I am certainly hoping that there is a second check or multiple checks for different funds. If they had been in anyway, transparent and provided, status reports and explain the process, I would be going through this stress. Since they didnt bother to do that and also didnt bother to send all the requested forms initially, I have no idea what to think. All I know for a fact, is that the only check amount I see in the records is $36,300 less than my last posted balance. Again, I cannot access my account anymore. When I try to call, obviously they are on vacation. I have a note from them that I cannot access because it is on my account which again I cannot access. This feels off, and its not a good look. One of the reasons I am so apprehensive is because my first transaction with this company was a nightmare. I was taking out my small pension. They would not allow me to make the request online because it was a different product than they usually worked with. I had to mail to them my account number, my Social Security number, and Ill kinds of details, and in the wrong hands could have led to my identity being stolen. the person managing that process gave me the wrong address. He gave me two incorrect addresses, so I mailed my personal information to the wrong address and it was sitting around being transferred from building to building. I didnt feel good about them and I dont feel good about them now. I requested a rollover on November 21 and today December 26. My new financial advisor still does not have my money. The only accounting I can find the principal site, which again I can no longer access, is $36,300 less than my last posted balance on the principal site. I know I have repeated myself, but I want to make sure everything is clear. I am looking for an explanation, and it better not be that they are only paying me going back to an earlier date. If my money was still invested, and still earning, which my daily balance is indicated, principal financial is not *********** keep those earnings. If there is a second check or a third check or what have you coming, they shouldve made that clear , and there is absolutely no indication in anything I have read or received, or anything posted online that would indicate that I should be looking for multiple checks. At the very least principal is guilty of a lack of transparency, and a lack of detail, at most, they are guilty of trying to keep my money. Neither impresses me.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/28/2023

  Thank you for forwarding. Principal will respond directly to the complainant.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/27/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  This business manages our company retirement plan. I have pointed out to them that online they show me to be 100% vested. On review of policy and information, my vesting schedule is 3 years for 100% vested, I am not yet at my 3-year anniversary. I am considering leaving my current employer and have made multiple requests for this company to clarify the conflicting information before I depart from my current employer. They have not been able to provide this information/clarification/correction within a reasonable amount of time.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/28/2023

  Thank you for forwarding. Principal will respond directly to the complainant.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/21/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I have a 401k thru Principal called the *** Acquisition, LLC (401k) Plan. My Plan ID is ******. My intent is to rollover my 401k to my *** at Thrivent Financial. I called w/ my Thrivent Advisor on Dec 12th to initiate this process. I was told I needed my dates of employment. Which I then called back with my rep on 12/20 with those dates. Then I was asked who my personal rep was for the plan from 13 years ago. I don't know this individual's name, and the company who this plan was thru is no longer in business. When we told the rep on the phone this information, they said one moment while I get a supervisor. My Thrivent Advisor and I waited on the phone for quite some time, and then the call was disconnected. There is no way for me to find out who the personal rep for the 401k plan was as the company has been closed for quite some time. Everytime we contact Principal, the service has been frustrating. I ask that this company allow me to speak with someone who can help me roll this over to my *** at Thrivent Financial. And I would like my Thrivent Advisor to be part of that conversation as well.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/21/2023

  Thank you for forwarding. Principal will respond directly to the complainant.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/21/2023

   
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***********************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/18/2023

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  on 12.15.2023 I looked at my individual Retirement Account ****** ******************** had order me a *** CD TRADITIONAL ************ for 3 years without my permission . Also they put interest rate is so low compared with current rates. My Account Summary balance is $34,261.82 They are providing with the interest rate of Balance ****% which is very low compare to my other ira ** (5.1%).I did NOT tell them rollover to a 3 year **. They said if I wanted to take it out, there will be penalities.I should not be penalize if I didnt give them permission to give me a 3year **

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/18/2023

  Thank you for forwarding the complaint. We will respond directly to the customer.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/14/2023

  Type:Order Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  This issues concerns the purchase of a life insurance policy. I originally purchased this policy when I was 29 years of age. I am currently 63. This is an adjustable life insurance policy in which the premiums increased as well as the face value. Several years ago, after inquiring about the ever increasing payment,I was told, the company no longer wrote adjustable life policies however I wasnt informed at that time nor given any options to convert my policy. I had taken a loan against the policy on several occasions however, The loan did not exceed the cash value as well as continuing to pay the monthly premiums. Last year, I was informed I needed to make a loan payment which I did. The loan interest is approximately $250 per year. However, it wasnt until I changed the option for the dividends to be sent to me which became a problem. I initially asked my advisor to use those funds to pay off the loan but I was told they were utilized for policy improvement. I had no need or desire to have a policy with that amount of coverage. I purchased a policy of $50,000 which is $312,000 with a cash valve of $8,000 which decreases daily. I was informed this year, I needed to pay $2000 to keep the policy in force even though my premiums were paid. On or before September, they discontinued my premiums as they were collected via bank draft and cancelled my policy. They also reduced my disability insurance from $1300 to $500 for the same premiums. This company basically took my money all these years and left me with nothing which I am certain they have made a significant amount of money on this policy especially with yearly dividends in excess of $2000 or more.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/14/2023

  Please be advised that Principal received the complaint **************** filed with your office, and we will be responding directly to *****************

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/14/2023

   
  Complaint: 21005615
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***************************

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/15/2023

  The response is requesting for reinstatement to reapply for a policy already paid for. ******************* also incorrectly reported information and options that were not presented to me. He did not provided any documents supporting those claims. My original policy outlines the otlriginal terms in which the policy builds its own cash value. In the early years of this policy, there was a cash value not based on dividends. Also , I need an explanation of the amount of funds requested because those funds are in excess. The company discontinued the premiums and lapsed the policy. However, there is still no viable option presented.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/18/2023

  We received Ms. ******* rebuttal to Principals response to her complaint.  I provided copies of multiple documents with my initial response, so I disagree with her statement that I didnt provide any documents to support our position. 

   

  Ill respond directly to ****************, as I did last time.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/11/2023

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  This company services our 401k accounts. I requested a hardship withdrawal (as well as a rollover withdrawal) on 10/20/2023. I received a confirmation email on 10/24/2023 stating that my request was received. On 11/1/2023 they called and informed me that they could not process the withdrawal request because the form was completed incorrectly. I have submitted the exact same request in the past and filled out the forms the same way and there were no issues. It seems that the processor who worked on this specific request did not know what they were doing and possibly needs more training. The representative noted that my form were completed correctly and the request would go through. On 11/9/2023 I received another email stating that my request was received. On the same day I received an email stating that my withdrawal was approved. The withdrawal that was approved was for the rollover, not hardship. On 11/14/2023 I called for an update as there had been no progress on my request. I was told everything looked in order and the processor would send me an email that day or the next day if they needed any further information. I still had no update or email by 11/28/2023 so I can AGAIN and was told they didn't see any issues, that a new processor was handling my request and it should be complete in the next couple days. There was still no update on 12/6/2023 and when I logged into my account I could no longer even see the request. When I called I was told the request was complete, that is why it wasn't showing so to give them a couple days and I would receive the approval email. It is now 12/11/2023 and I have still not received any information from them so I have called again. This is absolutely absurd for this request to take almost 2 months. You get absolutely nowhere with the representatives. They tell you whatever they need to tell you to get you off the phone. This needs to be handled IMMEDIATELY!

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/18/2023

  Thank you for forwarding. Principal will respond directly to the complainant

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/08/2023

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Principal Finance has been giving me the runaround on the rollover of my ESOP account. No one can give me an exact date and have been told 3 times that the hold of my funds have been delayed.I was told the last week of Nov, then the first week of December, then the 10th of December.I called to confirm my funds would be transferred, I was told the 15th. I finally got a hold of a supervisor named ***** and she told me it should be by December 31st. Principal Finance wont release my funds nor will they give me an exact date that MY funds will be released! I really dont understand how this can be legal.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/11/2023

  Thank you for forwarding. Principal will respond directly to the complainant.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/13/2023

   
  Complaint: 20979886
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  

  the response provided by Principal Financial was a phone call from the same supervisor, *****; and with the same ambiguous response: that we should receive our funds by the 31st. This is not a definite date. We want a definitive date that our funds to be released. At this point, Principal Financial is now causing harm to our well being. 
  

  I would like my funds to be expedited in a timely, defined manner as you would expect a company of this size to perform.

  Sincerely,

  
  *******************

  

  Business Response

  Date: 02/08/2024

  The complainant was contacted on December 27, 2023 and this issue has been resolved.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 02/09/2024

  The complainant was contacted on December 27, 2023 and this issue has been resolved.

  
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/08/2023

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Principal is the company that handles the 401k account for my employer, Otelco Telephone. On Nov 27, 2023 I called Principal to request a rollover transaction for my money in my 401k account. The ********** Services rep told me because of the plan we had, my money was not eligible for a rollover. I knew this was incorrect, but they were adamant. So, I double checked with our local account manager and they confirmed I should be able to take my money. I called Principal back and was told OK, but they would withhold 20% tax (not correct - I was requesting a rollover into another retirement account). I called back again to speak with a supervisor, was placed on hold forever and the call eventually disconnected. I referred my issue to my employer's legal/HR team on 12/6. They asked our Principal account manager to have a supervisor call me. That was 2 days ago and I'm still waiting. This is my life savings I'm trying to access.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/08/2023

  Thank you for forwarding. Principal will respond directly to the complainant.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/08/2023

   
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***********************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/07/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I opened this account with my employer, when the work relationship started, I been going through a divorce and I requested a loan of have of the amount that I have saved because I had to give to my now ex husband. By the splits of the money; now Im requesting to cancel my account and withdraw my money because I need it to pay my bills and the answer its NO; for me having that account its a liability mostly because was open during my marriage; the only option that the company have provide for me its to quit my job so I can have MY money back.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/13/2023

  Thank you for forwarding. Principal will respond directly to the complainant.