Note 11 — Pension and Other Post Retirement Benefit Plans

On August 8, 2008 the Company established The Executive Nonqualified Defined Benefit Plan of Gentherm Incorporated (the “Plan”), an unfunded executive pension plan, with an effective date of April 1, 2008. The Company’s Chief Executive Officer, is the only participant in the Plan which will, if fully vested, provide for 15 annual retirement benefit payments of $300,000 each beginning January 1, 2018. The participant will become entitled to receive such retirement benefit payments, or a portion thereof, through his continuous service to the Company over a six year period starting on April 1, 2011.

The Company records a projected benefit obligation representing the present value of future plan benefits when earned by the participant. The following table sets forth the benefit obligation, amounts recognized in the Company’s financial statements and the principal assumptions used:

	2015			2014
Change in projected benefit obligation:
Benefit obligation at beginning of year	$	2,474		$	1,848
Service cost		379			335
Interest cost		80			78
Actuarial (gain) loss		(35	)		213
Benefit obligation at end of year	$	2,898		$	2,474

The entire benefit obligation from the Plan is classified as a non-current liability within pension benefit obligations in the Company’s consolidated balance sheet. Service and interest cost is included in selling, general and administrative expenses in the Company’s consolidated statements of income and actuarial gains and losses are included the Company’s consolidated balance sheet as part of accumulated other comprehensive income within shareholders’ equity. Actuarial losses are amortized to selling, general and administrative expense in the Company’s consolidated statements of income based on the average future service life of the Plan. A discount rate assumption of 3.40%, 3.25% and 4.25% was used to determine the benefit obligation for the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively. A discount rate assumption of 3.25%, 4.25% and 3.25% was used to determine and the net periodic service cost for years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively. We do not expect contributions to be paid to the Plan during the next fiscal year.

Although the Plan is not funded, the Company has established a separate trust having the sole purpose of paying benefits under the Plan. The only asset of the trust is a corporate-owned life insurance policy (“COLI”). The COLI is valued at fair value using quoted prices listed in active markets (Level 1 input based on the U.S. GAAP fair value hierarchy). The policy value of the COLI was $1,993 and $2,056 as of December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively, and was included in other non-current assets.

Components of the Plan’s net periodic pension benefit cost for the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013 are as follows:

	2015		2014		2013
Service cost	$	379	$	335	$	355
Interest cost		80		78		53
Amortization of actuarial losses		27		—		37
Net periodic benefit cost	$	486	$	413	$	445

Pretax amounts recognized in other comprehensive income for the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013 are as follows


	2015			2014		2013
Actuarial (Gains)/losses	$	(35	)	$	213	$	(193	)
Amortization of actuarial losses		(27	)		—		(37	)
	$	(62	)	$	213	$	(230	)

Tax expense of $23 was recognized in other comprehensive income related to the Plan for the year ended December 31, 2015. Tax benefit of $121 was recognized in other comprehensive income related to the Plan for the year ended December 31, 2014. No tax impacts were recognized in other comprehensive income related to the Plan for the year ended December 31, 2013.

Note 11 — Pension and Other Post Retirement Benefit Plans (Continued)

Pretax unrecognized actuarial losses recorded in accumulated other comprehensive loss not yet recognized in net periodic benefit cost were $266 and $328 as of December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively. No amount of pretax unrecognized actuarial loss recorded in accumulated other comprehensive income as of December 31, 2015 are expected to be recognized as components of net periodic benefit cost in the year ending December 31, 2016.

Gentherm GmbH has an established defined benefit plan for retired and current members of its executive management team.

Gentherm GmbH records a projected benefit obligation representing the present value of future plan benefits when earned by the participant. The following table sets forth the benefit obligation and amounts recognized in the Company’s financial statements:

	2015			2014
Change in projected benefit obligation:
Benefit obligation at beginning of year	$	8,120		$	6,019
Service cost		—			304
Interest cost		142			181
Paid pension distributions		(257	)		(278	)
Actuarial (gains)/losses		(182	)		1,385
Past service cost		—			1,271
Exchange rate impact		(843	)		(762	)
Benefit obligation at end of year	$	6,980		$	8,120

The following table sets forth the fair value of the plan assets for the periods ending December 31, 2015 and 2014:

	2015			2014
Change in plan assets:
Plan assets at beginning of year	$	3,615		$	2,340
Actual return on plan assets		126			89
Contributions		257			1,236
Paid pension distributions		(257	)		(278	)
Actuarial gains/(losses)		(28	)		531
Exchange rate impact		(380	)		(303	)
Plan assets at end of year	$	3,333		$	3,615

The $3,647 net liability from the Gentherm GmbH plan is classified as a noncurrent liability in pension benefit obligation.

Pretax amounts recognized in other comprehensive income for the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013 are as follows:


	2015			2014		2013
Actuarial (gains)/losses	$	(154	)	$	1,916	$	67
Amortization of actuarial losses		(59	)		166		37
Amortization of prior service cost		(572	)		—		—
	$	(785	)	$	2,082	$	104

A tax expense of $211 was recognized in other comprehensive income related to the Gentherm GmbH defined benefit plan for the year ended December 31, 2015. Tax benefits of $559 and $18 were recognized in other comprehensive income for the years ended December 31, 2014 and 2013, respectively.

Pretax unrecognized actuarial losses recorded in accumulated other comprehensive loss not yet recognized in net periodic benefit cost were $1,821 and $2,267 as of December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively. We expect $47 of pretax unrecognized actuarial loss recorded in accumulated other comprehensive income as of December 31, 2015 to be recognized as components of net periodic benefit cost in the year ending December 31, 2016.

Note 11 — Pension and Other Post Retirement Benefit Plans (Continued)

Components of the Plan’s net periodic pension benefit cost for the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013 are as follows:

	2015			2014			2013
Service cost	$	—			304			—
Interest cost		142			181			180
Return on plan assets		(126	)		(89	)		(59	)
Amortization of prior service cost		572			—			—
Amortization of actuarial loss (gains)		59			(166	)		(37	)
Net periodic benefit cost	$	647			230			84

The Gentherm GmbH defined benefit plan is underfunded by $3,647 and $4,505 as of December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively. The portion of the net benefit obligation payable within the next 12 months and included in the Company’s consolidated balance sheet within accrued liabilities was $0 and $274 for December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively . The long-term portion of the net benefit obligation is included in pension benefit obligation. The net periodic benefit cost is included in selling, general and administrative expenses in the Company’s consolidated statements of income. The following table describes the actuarial assumptions used to determine the benefit obligation and the net periodic service cost:

	2015			2014
Discount rate		2.21	%		1.95	%
Expected long term rate of return on plan assets		3.70	%		3.80	%

Plan assets are comprised of Gentherm GmbH’s pension insurance policies and are pledged to the beneficiaries of the plan. A market valuation technique, based on observable underlying insurance charges, is used to determine the fair value of the pension plan assets (Level 2). The expected return on plan assets assumption used to calculate Gentherm GmbH’s pension benefit obligation was determined using actual returns realized on plan assets in the prior year. We expect to contribute $257 to the Gentherm GmbH defined benefit plan during the next fiscal year.

The schedule of expected pension payments made to Gentherm GmbH defined benefit plan participants over the next 10 years is as follows:

Year
2016	$	254
2017		253
2018		253
2019		251
2020		249
2021 - 2025		1,237
Total	$	2,497

Gentherm has adopted a 401(k) plan to provide all eligible employees a means to accumulate retirement savings on a tax-advantaged basis, and eligible executive officers can participate in this plan on the same basis as other participants. Participants may defer specified portions of their compensation. On a discretionary basis, the Company matches a portion of the employee contributions. The Plan also allows for additional discretionary contributions. Gentherm made $959, $543 and $191 in matching contributions to the 401(k) plan in 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively.