Employers in California pay slightly more into premiums for workers’ compensation insurance

According to Dave Jones, the California insurance commissioner, the top 100 companies in the state, which make up 96.7 percent of its market, have increased the rates that they have filed by an 2.8 percent average so far this year. The average increase will impact the majority of businesses that are legally required to purchase plans that pay for an injured employee’s medical expenses when the injury occurred while on the job, and that offers compensation for work related disabilities both temporary and permanent. The majority of the policies held…

Read More

Tennessee Legislature to investigate workers’ compensation system

Tennessee’s workers’ compensation insurance system is to be the subject of review this year. State officials, businesses and insurance experts are to examine how the system is working and how it can be improved. Tennessee has seen its fair share of criticism in recent years as several companies claim the state is too unfriendly to business. Governor Bill Haslam has decided to make the workers’ compensation system a primary focus of the state’s Legislature and hopes to solve some of the complaints it has generated in the past. One of…

Read More

New task force launched in California to fight against insurance fraud and an underground economy

The California Department of Insurance has announced that it will be joining the Department of Industrial Relations to fight against the state’s emerging underground economy. The two agencies have formed the Labor Enforcement Task Force in order to crack down on the violations against the state’s insurance and labor regulations that are rampant in this offshoot economy. Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones notes that this economy is mostly comprised of businesses who hire employees that are not fit for certain types of work. These businesses often fabricate documents concerning their employees…

Read More

Rates for Florida workers’ compensation to increase by 8.9 percent by 2012

According to Kevin McCarty, the Florida Insurance Commissioner, the insurance rates for workers’ compensation are slated to increase by 8.9 percent, and will do so beginning on January 1, 2012.  By giving his approval for the rise in rates, McCarty has simultaneously refused the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI) rate request, stating that there was a flaw in the council’s methodology.  Equally, McCarty has denied another increase proposal by the NCCI regarding minimum premiums.  Should the NCCI wish to continue to pursue its request, it will need to re-file. …

Read More

AIR Worldwide Updates Terrorism Model for the U.S.

NEW ORLEANS – Catastrophe risk modeling firm AIR Worldwide (AIR) released an update to its terrorism model for the United States. The model, which is used by insurers and reinsurers to assess potential losses to property and workers compensation risks, reflects less frequent and lower-severity attacks based on a reassessment of the threat by a team of leading terrorism experts. “AIR’s team of operational threat analysis experts includes the FBI’s former head of counterterrorism and members of the CIA responsible for developing terrorist group profiling,” said Jack Seaquist, assistant vice…

Read More