Kentucky Workers’ Compensation Costs Fall Again

Kentucky Insurance Commissioner Sharon P. Clark announced recently that Kentucky workers’ compensation loss costs have fallen for the eighth year in a row. The announcement follows an annual filing used by most insurance carriers to develop rates for workers’ compensation coverage.

Each year, the National Council on Compensation Insurance Inc., an advisory organization, files a report based on an analysis of data from insurance carriers across the nation.

The analysis includes loss costs, which represent average compensation for lost wages based on level of disability and medical benefit payments. Most carriers use the loss cost values as a basis for determining what rates to charge Kentucky employers for workers’ compensation insurance coverage.

The NCCI loss cost figures for 2013 show an average reduction of 7.9 percent for the 590 industrial classes used in Kentucky. Figures released last year also showed a 7.9 percent decrease. Mining, which has historically been one of Kentucky’s more dangerous classes, showed a 4.9 percent decrease for surface mining and a 4.8 percent decrease for underground mining for 2013. Loss costs are down an average of 46.8 percent for the past eight years.

The decrease in workers’ compensation insurance costs could benefit Kentucky workers. By law, most employers are required to carry workers’ compensation insurance for workplace injuries and illnesses.

Like other types of insurance, workers’ compensation insurance costs contribute to an employer’s overhead. In theory, the savings from reduced costs should be passed on to employees in the form of better pay or benefits.

If you have suffered a workplace injury or illness, or have lost a loved one as the result of a workplace accident, you may be entitled to Kentucky workers’ compensation benefits.

Source:

• The Lane Report