Author, Daniel Frazee, Executive Vice President, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

As California business owners continue incurring costs as they work their way through the maze of ever-changing COVID-19 regulations and protocols, prioritizing critical elements of your internal safety program can directly lower your insurance costs. Refocusing on key areas below will help present an effective, detailed submission to the marketplace that will lead to talking points with an underwriter for schedule credits and ultimately, lower rates and premiums.

Employee Benefits

Workers’ compensation underwriters pay close attention to employee benefit plans from a submission they are reviewing to quote. A deeper dive will create inquiries on overall employee participation, employer’s contribution to the plan, and whether established “wellness” plans are made available. High participation and contribution can show underwriters that employees value the benefits being offered and that the employer is investing in their most important asset, the employees. Lastly, industry professionals commonly link reduced fraudulent workers’ compensation claims to more robust, supported employee benefit programs.

Formal Safety Program

Developing a formal, documented Injury and Illness Prevention Program (IIPP) is truly just a baseline for managing risk for any business. The IIPP must be a living, changing document that contemplates random/periodic inspections, regular meeting intervals, safety orientation for new employees, and detailed investigative reports performed by field and management. Your program can be compared to a book that sits on the shelf and develops dust. Or, if you are focused on best practice techniques, it can be used as a tool for education, training, and risk mitigation. It should change as your company changes and incorporate the safety priorities instilled from the top down. Additionally, incorporating safety programs like Rancho Mesa’s RM365 Advantage Safety Star™ training program for foreman and supervisors help make your safety program go to the next level and really stand out in the insurance marketplace. Dynamic IIPPs stand out in a workers’ compensation submission process. They provide much needed detail to simple Yes/No questions on a supplemental application and show just how important safety is to the organization that is being underwritten.

Return to Work Program

Companies of all types will share that they support a return to work program when their injured employee is cleared for modified duty. That support needs to be taken a few steps further to improve your program. Create job descriptions for potential modified positions. Identify and engage with specific doctors within your network and ensure that these job descriptions are on file. This process can often help expedite employees back to the field, warehouse, office, etc. and ultimately lower temporary disability payments which can lower claim reserves. Use Rancho Mesa’s RM365 HRAdvantage™ portal to generate job descriptions and manage employee’s modified duty in the Risk Management Center.

Hiring Practices

Developing “gates” in the hiring process are often overlooked as too expensive or time consuming.  But, the costs of bad hiring decisions can linger for years, impacting your bottom line and employee morale. Employers must strongly consider pre-employment physicals and drug testing, typically performed post interview and before an offer is made. As the Compliance Director for Current Consulting Group LLC, Andrew Current said, “The average cost of a pre-employment drug test is $45. The average turnover cost for an entry level employee is $6,600.”  There is added benefit with workers’ compensation underwriters who view pre-employment checks as key controls to minimizing claim frequency and severity. Take advantage of the New Employee Onboarding Checklist and other resources in the RM365 HRAdvantage Portal.

Website Development

Most, if not all, workers’ compensation underwriters begin their review process by accessing the company in question’s website to learn more about their operation, exposures, risks, etc. Therefore, seeing your website through this same filter and utilizing your broker as an additional soundboard of information, consider these possible edits and/or redesign of your website:

• Add a “Safety” link or tab, allowing space for sharing your company’s philosophy on managing risk.

• Include a section on any safety awards or recognition that you may have received.

• Remove any pictures on your website that might create confusion or concern about your operation as it relates to safety and risk.

• Include examples of safety protocol that are unique to your operation (e.g. proper use of machinery, ladder usage, cleanliness of operating areas, etc).

Like any potential internal investment, companies must always balance whether the time and resource commitment will ultimately benefit their company. Many of the above recommendations require minimal resources and can pay huge dividends in consistently securing the most competitive workers’ compensation pricing, often a significant line item on a profit and loss statement. You may find cost savings in areas you did not know were possible that can help your business survive and remain profitable in these difficult times.

To discuss how your company’s safety program can affect your workers’ compensation premium, contact me at (619) 937-0172 or dfrazee@ranchomesa.com.