Hallmark Cards, Inc.
Updated Filing received by DOL
Hallmark Cards, Inc., a wholesale trade employer in Kansas City, Missouri, reported 5,086 participants in its health and welfare plans for plan year 2024. Its Form 5500 shows $2.5M in insurance premiums across 15 contracts and $36,191 in broker commissions and fees. The plan is a mix of insured and self-funded coverage. The Department of Labor received the filing on October 15, 2025, within the extension window.
Who was paid on Hallmark Cards, Inc.'s plan
Schedule A, Part I lists each broker or agent paid on each insurance contract and the amount. Totals below add every contract Hallmark Cards, Inc. filed for 2024.
| Broker or agent | Commissions | Fees | Total | Contracts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercer · Des Moines, IA | $18,125 | $99 | $18,224 | 2 |
| Lockton · Dallas, TX | $8,761 | $256 | $9,017 | 3 |
| Img · Indianapolis, IN | $0 | $4,732 | $4,732 | 1 |
| Marsh McLennan Agency · San Juan, PR | $4,218 | $0 | $4,218 | 1 |
Source: DOL Form 5500 Schedule A, Part I (broker commissions and fees), plan year 2024, as published in EBSA's 2024 "Latest" dataset. Part I names whoever the carrier paid, which can be a firm or an individual agent; both are public record. Amounts exclude pay from carriers not tied to a listed contract.
Insurance contracts and carriers
Every insurance contract reported on Schedule A: carrier, what it covers, people covered at year end, earned premium, and broker compensation.
| Carrier · coverage | Covered | Premium | Broker pay | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metropolitan Life Insurance Companylife | 1,691 | $2.5M | $226 | 0.0% |
| Surency Life and Healthvision | 1,669 | — | — | — |
| Prudential Insurance Company of Americacoverage not coded | 5,785 | — | $31,618 | — |
| Surency Life and Healthvision | 1,956 | — | — | — |
| Unitedhealthcare Insurance Companyhealth | 1 | — | — | — |
| Cigna Health and Life Insurance Companyvision | 3,638 | — | — | — |
| Cigna Health and Life Insurance Companyhealth, dental | 1 | — | — | — |
| Life Insurance Company of North Americalong-term disability | 154 | — | — | — |
| Metropolitan Life Insurance Companylife | 4,656 | — | $129 | — |
| New York Life Group Insurance Company of NYshort-term disability | 607 | — | — | — |
| Life Insurance Company of North Americashort-term disability | 44 | — | — | — |
| United Behavioral Health dba Optumcoverage not coded | 15,647 | — | — | — |
| Triple S Salud, Inc.health, prescription drug | 6 | — | $4,218 | — |
| United Healthcare Insurance Companystop-loss | 4,211 | — | — | — |
| United Healthcare Insurance Companystop-loss | 150 | — | — | — |
Source: DOL Form 5500 Schedule A, plan year 2024. Self-funded medical coverage has no premium; amounts shown for it are stop-loss or administrative contracts.
How Hallmark Cards, Inc. compares
Medians across employers for plan year 2024, the most recent complete year. Commission rates use fully insured medical contracts only; dollar medians use every employer that disclosed broker pay.
Not computable: no insured medical premium on the filing.
Source: BenefitsLedger benchmarks from 58,547 employer health plans with 100 or more participants, plan year 2024. Methodology.
Year over year
| 2023 | 2024 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Participants | 4,771 | 5,086 | +6.6% |
| Premiums filed | $2,595,252 | $2,495,636 | not comparable |
| Broker commissions + fees | $34,294 | $36,191 | +5.5% |
| Commission rate | — | — | — |
Source: DOL Form 5500 filings for plan years 2023 and 2024.
Filings and timeliness
Plans this employer filed under its EIN with a health benefit code. Large plans are due seven months after the plan year ends, or two and a half months later with an extension; amended filings carry the amendment date, so no timing is asserted for them.
| Plan | Plan year end | Received by DOL | Timing | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health and Welfare Benefit Plan#514 · insurance, general assets, trust | December 31, 2024 | October 15, 2025 | within extension | 5,086 |
| Retiree Medical Plan#520 · insurance, general assets, trust | December 31, 2024 | October 15, 2025 | within extension | 134 |
Source: DOL Form 5500 Part I and signature dates; "late" means received after the extended deadline (the 15th day of the tenth month after plan year end). What a late Form 5500 costs.
How much did Hallmark Cards, Inc. pay in health insurance broker commissions in 2024?
Hallmark Cards, Inc.'s 2024 Form 5500 reports $36,191 in broker commissions and fees across 15 insurance contracts ($31,104 in commissions, $5,087 in fees), with Mercer receiving the largest share.
Is Hallmark Cards, Inc.'s health plan self-funded or fully insured?
The 2024 filing indicates the plan is a mix of insured and self-funded coverage. Medical coverage is written by Unitedhealthcare Insurance Company, Cigna Health and Life Insurance Company, Triple S Salud, Inc..
How does Hallmark Cards, Inc.'s broker compensation compare with similar employers?
A commission-to-premium ratio cannot be computed for Hallmark Cards, Inc. because the filing does not report medical premium on Schedule A (usual for self-funded plans). In dollars, employers with 5,000+ participants that disclosed broker pay reported a median of $458,262.
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Record built October 24, 2026 from U.S. Department of Labor, EBSA Form 5500 datasets (2025, 2024, 2023 plan years, 'Latest' files). Filings can run 7 to 10 months behind the plan year; always confirm against current plan documents. BenefitsLedger is not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Labor. Open the DOL filing search.