CARRA > Our Service Statement
Printable version
(PDF)
A word from the Chairman
Dear Madam:
Dear Sir:
It is with great pleasure that I present the Service Statement of the Commission
administrative des régimes de retraite et d’assurances (CARRA). Improving our
services has been at the centre of our concerns for many years. Our efforts
have intensified since 1995, when our agency turned to management by results,
which is oriented towards the delivery of better client services.
Our publishing of this Service Statement clearly indicates our will to serve
you better. It also strengthens our commitments by defining them clearly for
you, thereby allowing you to assess the quality of our client services. Our
commitments concern the following aspects:
- service availability,
- Courteous and confidential service,
- quality information on your rights,
- reliable and prompt service.
This initiative is part of the measures taken by the Government to improve
the relationship between the Administration and the population.
Duc Vu
Chairman
Our mission and our mandate
CARRA’s mission is to ensure that all members and beneficiaries of the plans
it administers receive the benefits to which they are entitled, and to this
effect, to help them plan their retirement. The need for help in the planning
of retirement has often been expressed by interested parties. This new aspect
is intended to make CARRA’s relationship with its clients more proactive, since
a retirement that is financially and psychologically satisfying requires preparation
and timely decisions.
CARRA’s mandate is to administer the pension plans entrusted to it, in compliance
with the provisions applicable to the complete cycle of the services it provides,
from enrolment in a plan to the payment of the benefits accumulated by a member.
It also includes the expert advice provided for the preparation of actuarial
valuations and other studies required by bargaining parties and retirement committees.
Our clients
CARRA’s clients are essentially former or current members of the civil service
and the education and health and social services sectors, pensioners and their
spouses and heirs. The members of the National Assembly, judges, the members
of the Sûreté du Québec, peace officers in correctional services and elected
municipal officers of certain municipalities are also CARRA’s clients.
Our services
CARRA is in contact with its clients during a significant part of their life,
from the beginning of their career to their death. Our main services are the
following:
For members:
- registration of contributions to a retirement plan, which includes issuing
a statement of contributions and an estimate of projected benefits;
- redemption of years of service;
- benefits payable in case of terminal illness or disability, depending
on the pension plan;
- estimates of their benefits, the amount of their future pension, the
cost of a redemption of service, etc.;
- refund of contributions or transfer of the value of the funds accumulated
in a pension plan to a locked-in retirement account (LIRA) or a life income
fund (LIF);
- transfer of years of service from one plan to another.
For future pensioners:
- information sessions and pre-retirement workshops for those who work
in the civil service and for the management personnel of the three networks;
- processing applications for a retirement pension and, as the case may
be, applications for disability benefits.
For pensioners:
- payment of benefits into the bank account of their choice and, in some
cases, in the currency of their country of residence;
- deductions at source.
For surviving spouses, children and heirs:
- processing applications for a pension filed by spouses and payment of
orphans’ benefits;
- payment of death benefits and payment of basic life insurance to members’
heirs.
For all:
- information in French and English, by telephone, in writing, on the
Internet or in person as well as information sessions and public relations
activities;
- distribution of printed and on-line publications such as information
bulletins, guides, communiqués and forms.
Our commitments
Courteous and confidential service
- We clearly identify ourselves when answering your call.
- We listen to you attentively, with an open and understanding attitude,
in short, we show you empathy.
- We strictly apply the rules on the protection of personal information.
Quality information on your rights
- We provide you with a statement of contributions every three years or
on request.
- We provide you with accurate and complete information.
- We inform you of any new retirement measures that concern you within
three months of their passing.
- Three years before retirement, we offer pre-retirement workshops to
civil service employees and management personnel of the three networks.
Reliable and prompt services
- We correctly determine your entitlement to a pension or a refund as
well as their value.
- We insure the continuity of your income by means of a pension payment
or an advance, provided we receive your application for a pension 20 days
before you stop working.
- We confirm the amount of your pension within an average of 75 days following
the receipt of your application for a pension.
- We confirm the amount of your contribution reimbursement within an average
of 60 days following the receipt of your application for a reimbursement.
- We process 75% of all the letters we receive within 30 days following
their receipt.
- We pay your pension by direct deposit or cheque no later than the 15th
of each month.
Service availability
- We ensure that you will meet an information clerk within 20 minutes
after your arrival at CARRA.
- We provide a toll-free telephone service everywhere in Québec.
- We provide services and publications in French in conformity with the
language policy of the Québec Government as well as services and documentation
in English to those who request them.
- We make sure our services are available in many ways: in person at our
offices in Québec City, by telephone, fax, mail, Internet, exhibitions and
shows.
Assessment of our commitments
Each year, CARRA uses the appropriate measures to check whether the commitments
set forth in our Service Statement have been met. The results are published
in the annual management report tabled each year before the National Assembly
by the minister responsible for our agency. The required improvements are made
as soon as possible. In addition, CARRA holds surveys to ensure that it provides
the most adequate service possible in response to its clients’ needs and expectations.
Help us serve you better
To help us fulfil our commitments, it is important that:
- you provide us, within the prescribed time limit, with complete and
accurate information about your application;
- you inform us quickly of any change concerning your file or application;
- you share with us any suggestions and comments you have about the quality
of our services.
Complaints office
The complaints office deals confidentially with complaints and comments about
the quality of the service provided by our personnel.
Filing a complaint is an administrative recourse that concerns the quality
of the service provided by our personnel. It does not replace legal recourses
such as reexamination and arbitration.
We process complaints within 15 days of receiving them. If we cannot meet
the deadline, the person responsible will contact you.
How to contact the complaints office
If you are not satisfied with our services and wish to submit a comment,
an objection or a complaint, you can contact us by the means that is the most
convenient for you:
- Mail, by writing to the:
Secrétaire général de la CARRA et
responsable des plaintes
Commission administrative des régimes
de retraite et d’assurances
475, rue Saint-Amable
Québec (Québec) G1R 5X3
- Telephone: 418 644-3092
- Fax: 418 644-0265
How to access our services
To obtain information about your pension plan, contact your employer or CARRA.
Employers are our partners in the administration of pension plans and they act
as intermediaries between CARRA and you. There are phone and fax numbers specially
reserved to them. This allows them to obtain detailed information about new
retirement measures and answers to your questions. They can also provide you
with various documents, such as forms.
You can reach us by phone at one of the following numbers:
If you receive a pension from CARRA:
418 644-2325 (Québec City area)
1 800 368-9883 (elsewhere in Québec)
For any other information:
418 643-4881 (Québec City area)
1 800 463-5533 (elsewhere in Québec)
You can reach us at the following address:
Commission administrative des régimes
de retraite et d’assurances
475, rue Saint-Amable
Québec (Québec) G1R 5X3
Our business hours are:
from 8:30 a.m. to 12 noon and from 1:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.,
Monday through Friday
You can send us a fax at:
418 644-3839
You can also visit our Web site.
