Benefit payments and associated deductions can be simulated online by a user that are active and/or pending closure. Simulating a payment allows a user to see all payments and deductions due to a participant for a specific date before the payment is issued. The system also displays the reducing balance of the total benefit payment minus any deductions per case component. Any tax adjustments defined for the product will be simulated and applied to the benefit payment before any deductions are processed.
When a payment is simulated, the system retrieves the financial components created when the case was activated, or last re-assessed, and rolls then forward until the date entered by the user is reached. It generates a simulation of the payment for that week or for the delivery period of the case and displays nominee details for the cover period. The system also calculates the amount, cover period, and effective date of the payment. A deduction will be skipped and will not appear in the simulation if the maximum deduction rate will be exceeded, the minimum deduction rate has not been reached, or if the deduction amount is zero.
If the system detects activated deductions on the case, these deductions are applied to the financial components and both the reducing payment amount and the final payment amount are displayed. If no activated deductions exist, the system only displays the payments due on that date. If a deduction cannot be made, a reason why will be displayed.
Simulating a payment optimizes deduction processing by allowing a user to see which deduction will be processed over a given period. If the user is not satisfied with a deduction that is due for processing or the order of the deduction, the deduction can easily be modified to achieve the desired result.
The user can also save and store payment simulations. This allows the user to compare the effects of each simulation, along with any tax that has been initially taken from the benefit.