Category: California

California Workers Compensation Rates 2019

Prices are Declining for California Workers Compensation Rates in 2019 

During the year 2019, California Workers Compensation Rates are going to cost the business community less than in 2018. The average rate of $1.63 per $100 in payroll by Jan. 1 will be approximately 72 percent lower than when rates peaked in 2015. In 2015 the recommended rate was $2.81 per $100 in payroll.  According to California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones, “Cost savings in the workers’ compensation system have helped insurers and employers deserve to share in the cost savings through lower premiums,” This is the lowest rates for workers compensation insurance have been in the state of California in five years.

Iconic Golden Gate Bridge, atracts businesses to San Francisco. Those businesses will be paying less for California Workers Compensation Rates 2019.

What is contributing to Lower California Workers Compensation Rates 2019?

California has some of the highest rates for workers comp in the country the California Workers Compensation Bureau WCIRB has pointed to a high frequency of permanent disability claims as a reason for higher costs. Also, California has a higher than average cost of handling claims and delivering benefits. This contributes to the state having higher rates for workers compensation premium. Businesses in the state of California spent $16.2 billion on workers’ compensation just last year.

In 2019, California Work Comp Rates are continuing to decrease for the fifth straight year. These declines occurred primarily because of reforms made to fight the opioid epidemic, low inflation for medical and pharmaceutical costs, and increased fraud investigations. Because of these efforts throughout the entire workers compensation system, the amount paid out for opioids in 2018 was nearly a fifth of what it was in 2013. This drop was from $15,687 to $3,204 per 100 claims, according to WCIRB (The California Workers Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau). A large part of the reason for the decrease in what the workers compensation system paid out for opioid prescriptions is because California enacted a program called CURES (Controlled Substance Utilization Review and Evaluation System). CURES is a database of Schedule II, III and IV controlled substance prescriptions dispensed in California serving the public health, regulatory oversight agencies, and law enforcement. The CURES Program requires dispensing pharmacies, clinics, or other dispensers of Schedule II through IV controlled substances to provide specified dispensing information to the Department of Justice on a weekly basis in a format approved and accepted by the DOJ. This has significantly decreased the amount of opioid abuse throughout the state and that has benefited the workers compensation system.

Iconic Hollywood, California

What can Business Owners do to continue saving on California Workers Compensation Rates 2019

California Workers Compensation Rates 2019 are decreasing for the fifth straight year. This represents a decrease of 72 percent over this time period, but businesses in California still pay more for workers comp coverage than nearly all states throughout the country. Because of these high rates, it is important to maximize savings in any way possible. Here are five ways business owners can alter the way they do business in order to save on commercial insurance.

Make sure your business is classified properly

Far too many businesses are classified improperly for purposes of workers compensation insurance. This is attributed to a number of reasons, but many times it is because a business owner rushes through the quoting process when purchasing Workmans Comp Insurance California. An insurance agent can only act upon the information they are given by the business owner when they are shopping for the best coverage to fit a business owners needs. If the business owner does not explain many intricacies of their business, the business may be classified improperly and pay more or less for coverage throughout the year. This mistake usually gets cleared during the end of term audit, but it can cause a business to owe additional premium. Even if the business over pays and is issued a refund, it means the business has tied up valuable cash flow in unnecessary premium payments throughout the year. These unnecessary payments could have been used on other more important business expenses.

Implement a Safety Program

A Safety Program can help limit the cost of workers compensation insurance in California because it will limit both the frequency and severity of claims. When you business has less claims and the claims you do have are small, the insurance carrier is more likely to offer your business a favorable rate for premium.

Start the Safety Program the day employees are hired

Safety Programs should be a part of your company culture. This should not start after a month in which a few accidents occur. Safety should be part of the training program from the moment an employee starts on the job. The more the business (especially the key employees) talk about safety, the more likely that message is to fester throughout the organization.

Add a Return-to-Work Program to your Safety Policy

A Return to Work Program can significantly impact your experience modification rating in a positive way. When an employee is hurt and not able to work they are much more likely to develop new habits outside of their daily work routine. The longer they stay off the job, the more likely the injured employee is to become long term unemployed. This can have a drastic impact on the experience modification rating of the business. Businesses that are able to get an employee back on the job, even in a limited capacity, are more likely to have those employees return to permanent work.

Communicate with your Insurance Carrier and Healthcare Provider

Communication is key when it comes to navigating the workers compensation system. This is true for the business owner, the injured worker, the insurance agent as well as the underwriter who represents the insurance carrier. The business owner has a responsibility to help the injured worker navigate the workers compensation system and get the care they deserve while not able to work. It is important to keep your agent in the loop throughout this process even though it is the responsibility of the carrier to administer the program. Keeping the agent in the loop can help in the unfortunate event that the carrier is not living up to their end of the bargain. If the agent knows about this process throughout, they can help hold the carrier accountable.

Surfing the California Coast

What are the Requirements for Workers Compensation Insurance Coverage in the State of California?

In California, all employers are required to purchase workers compensation coverage regardless of the number of employees. Sole Proprietors are not automatically included in coverage, but can elect to be included using the Acord 130 Application. Partners are automatically included on policies and they are not allowed to be exempt. Corporate Officers who happen to be the sole shareholder are excluded from coverage, but they have the ability to elect coverage if they so choose. All LLC Members who work within a business are included for coverage, but non-working LLC Members are excluded from coverage unless they elect to be covered using the Acord 130 form.

What are the Payroll Requirements for Business Owners in California?

According to California regulation, Sole Proprietors who elect to include themselves on workers comp coverage must use a minimum payroll amount of $52,000 and a maximum of $133,900 for rating purposes as of January First, 2019. Partners, Officers and LLC Members who do not excluded themselves from coverage must utilize a minimum payroll of $52,000 and a maximum of $133,900 for the purpose of rating workers comp premium.

 

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Workers Compensation Insurance in California

What makes the Workers’ Compensation Insurance System in California unique?

California Workers' Compensation Insurance

 

California is currently the most expensive state in the country for employers workers compensation coverage. Rates throughout the state have continued to rise over the past 10 years. Much of the increased costs are caused by the rising costs of medical coverage and state laws.

State law, like in most states, requires all employers to provide workers compensation coverage to all employees of a particular company.  Failure to purchase workers comp coverage is a criminal offense in California. Employers may receive a fine of $10,000 or more and up to a year in a county jail.  It is also illegal for any employer to pay a medical bill directly to the provider. A claim form (DWC Form 1) must be filed with the insurance company for any injury requiring more than first aid care.

San Francisco, California

As you may know, California has the largest economy of any state in the United States.  This brings an extraordinary amount of businesses to the state who have an extraordinary need for commercial insurance.  Because the states mandates that employers carry workers comp coverage there is a lot of competition to quote the coverage of those businesses.  In most cases this increased competition would bring the cost of the coverage down, but not in the case of workers compensation insurance.  The main factors driving prices up in the state of California are the state regulations that many would say favor the worker over employers.

According to the Insurance Journal there are steps being taken to curb the increase in workers compensation costs throughout the state of California:

“Claim frequency, claim administration and high medical costs are typically among the drivers of high workers’ comp rates. However, the state in 2012 passed a massive workers’ comp reform law, which according to its supporters seems to be working.

California’s Workers’ Compensation Rating Bureau earlier this month submitted a pure premium rate filing to the California Department of Insurance proposing Jan. 1, 2017 advisory pure premium rates lower than the corresponding industry average.

The WCIRB submitted a rate filing that averaged $2.22 per $100 of payroll, citing in part legislative changes made this year that the bureau believes could help reduce costs. Senate Bill 1160 and Assembly Bill 1244 are both designed to remove medical providers convicted of fraud from the system and prevent them from filing liens.”

Additionally, a lot of business owners in California assume workers compensation is similar regardless of the carrier. Depending upon the industry you are in and the scope of the work you do within that industry, coverages can vary dramatically.  The cost of coverage for the same classification codes can vary significantly between carriers. This is because the appetites for certain industries and types of coverage change from year to year and carrier to carrier. For example, after Hurricane Katrina many insurance carriers were very conservative when offering homeowners or hurricane insurance throughout the coastal areas in the southeast.  This was because of the damaging amount of claims the carriers had to pay out as a result of this damaging storm.

At some independent insurance agencies, they take the work out of finding an insurance company with quality coverage and affordable rates. They do this by being able to quote you coverage from several carriers as opposed to just one or a select few.  In short, they shop the insurance so you don’t have to. Partnering with a good independent insurance agent with whom you trust and speaking candidly with them about your business can go a long way towards saving on workers compensation insurance in California.

Santa Monica, California