Looking for new WC insurance carrier

Paige

I am interested in finding a new WC carrier for our company and don't have the experience of having done this before--it's always been set up for me when I've started with a company and we've had no reason to change. Two questions--1) any suggestions on carrieres you've had good/bad experiences with; and 2) where do I begin and what do I do from there??

Thanks.

NaeNae55

There are plenty of brokers out there who handle work comp. You can also check with your liability carrier (where we get our work comp), or call your state agency which handles work comp issues and they will probably have a list.

bsa

When you start the quote process they will ask for salary information and job positions. The job positions will become a NCCI code (National Council on Compensation Insurance); each NCCI code will have a "rate" associated with it. Salary $'s for each code in your business will be used to calculate your premium. My broker helped me to be sure that the classifications they used were appropriate (we had to argue some adjustments).

Choose a carrier that doesn't require a "deposit" to be used as reserves for future claims.

Find out about their reporting process and how/if they keep you informed on the status of open cases. My largest complaint with my current carrier (Hartford) is the lack of relevant communication on open cases. I have to call them to find out what's up.

Most carriers will offer consultant inspections to help reduce w/c claims. I have never gotten anything helpful from them -- OSHA's SHARP program gives me more useful tools and suggestions.

Your broker and the carrier you choose should help you learn to get the most from your coverage.

Lori B

I think lack of communication is a big complaint with many carriers and open claims. I would look for a carrier that provides you with internet access to open claim notes. You can get in and review the claim as it progresses, including nurse notes, adjuster notes, etc. CHUBB offers this.

My other complaint with the carriers is lack of agressiveness when fraud is suspected. They all talk a good game here but few are willing to devote a lot resources to watching the questionable claimants. They might send an investigator out once but that's it unless you have solid tips of when and where to watch someone. Of course, if I knew all that, I wouldn't need the investigator in the first place, would I? We ended up having to hire our own private investigators to film people working at other jobs, etc.

Good luck in the search. An experienced broker can be very valuable here.