Bridgestone Americas 401(k) match, vesting and fees

Each participant is immediately and fully vested in all participant contributions and earnings thereon. Participants hired on or after January 1, 2019 are vested in matching contributions after three years of service. Participants who were hired or rehired prior to January 1, 2019 are vested in matching contributions of the Company and the earnings thereon in increments of 20% for each year beginning with the employee’s second year of service, with 100% vesting of the Company contributions after completing six years of service. Participants are also 100% vested upon death, disability, or the attainment of age 65 while an employee. If a participant’s employment with the Company is terminated for any reason other than those indicated above, the unvested portion of the participant’s account is forfeited on the earlier of (1) the date of distribution of the vested account balance or (2) the fifth anniversary of the termination date. Forfeitures under the Plan are used to reduce Company contributions. Forfeitures used during the year ended December 31, 2024 were $3,580,269. Unused forfeitures as of December 31, 2024 and 2023 were $141,694 and $104,774, respectively.

Participants who do not affirmatively enroll or decline enrollment upon becoming eligible to participate in the Plan are automatically enrolled in the Plan at a contribution rate of 3%, which automatically increases by 1% each year until the contribution rate reaches 6% unless a participant opts out. Automatic contributions are treated as pre-tax contributions and are invested 100% in a target retirement date investment fund based on the participant’s date of birth.

Participants may elect to contribute to their account on a pre-tax basis, on a Roth basis, or a combination of both.

Subject to certain limitations, the Plan permits participants to borrow up to one half of the vested amount credited to a participant’s account, subject to a minimum of $1,000 and a maximum of $50,000, reduced by the highest outstanding loan balance within the past 12 months. A participant may have only one outstanding loan at any time, which may be repaid in advance without penalty. The period of repayment for a loan is one to five years, with a fixed interest rate equal to the prime rate for the last business day of the first month of the calendar quarter immediately preceding the calendar quarter in which the loan is made. Participants may borrow from the vested value of their balances invested in any of the various investment funds at their discretion. Loan repayments are invested on the same pro rata basis as the borrower has directed the investment of his or her current Plan contributions.