Workers’ Compensation – Let’s Discuss

One thing for sure, when discussing Workers’ Compensation Insurance with either clients or prospects, the conversation is almost always going to be a very lively one, especially when, in some cases, the comp premium is much higher than the General Liability premium.

Whether you know it or not, in the great State of Arizona, having a Workers’ Compensation Insurance Policy is mandatory if you have any employees, and even if you are a one-person owner with an LLC, according to the state of Arizona, your company must have a worker’s compensation policy in place. Once you have the policy in place, as an owner, you have the right to exclude yourself from coverage, if you so choose.

The purpose of Workers’ Compensation Insurance near Phoenix is to provide coverage for your company’s employees’ medical expenses and some portion of lost wages should an employee suffer an injury while they are on the job. You can look at workers’ compensation insurance as a state-regulated, no-fault liability insurance which will cover your company’s employees’ rehabilitation expenses, lost wages, medical expenses and/or death that resulted from a work-related illness or an injury.

Importance Of Workers’ Compensation

Your company’s employees, regardless of whose fault it is, are eligible for worker’s compensation benefits should they suffer an injury while on the job. These same worker’s compensation benefits will apply should an injury or illness occur in the performance of their job conducting an employer’s business, as well. With this type of coverage, in most cases, it will protect an employer from being sued by an injured worker. It would be in your company’s best interest to research and learn as much as you can regarding the state rules and regulations concerning your workers compensation insurance, and if your company sends it employees to other states to work, you will need to contact your workers’ comp carrier to make them aware of this, so these employees will be covered while working in another state.

How To Keep Your Compensation Costs Under Control

When talking with the clients, we try to gather as much information as we can from them regarding their employees’ duties as well as what type of business the client is engaged in. After the info is gathered, we will provide a list of what comp class codes are appropriate to be used, and if there are multiple codes that will be used, we urge the client to keep as meticulous time card records as possible, so as not to have all their payroll put into the highest class code, which will likely happen if there are no time card records kept. It’s just good business sense to keep track of what jobs and the time spent performing those jobs your employees are doing to keep your comp costs in check. After we review with the client on what the potential workers compensation premium may end being, a familiar phase seems to be uttered by the client, “it would be so much more economical to just hire independent contractors and just 1099 them, saving on hours of paperwork, as well as money.”

Check With Your Insurance Company Before Hiring An Independent Contractor

That is easier said than done these days. Workers’ Compensation Insurance carriers are stepping up their policies regarding independent contractors, so our advice is before you hire that independent contractor, you check with your comp carrier. There is a good chance that if you don’t, and you try to use a comp waiver signed by the independent contractor, at audit time, it will be rejected by the insurance carrier, and you will be charged additional monies for the amount you paid to the independent contractor. Our advice would be that you contact the Arizona State Compensation Board, your own comp insurance carrier, and you may also want to consult an attorney to make sure you are following the proper procedures and rules so you will be in compliance.

When running the day-to-day operations of your company, we realize that there are so many hats that you may have to wear from payroll, marketing, scheduling, inventory, to one of a dozen or so other responsibilities you may have; but managing your company’s workers compensation insurance near Scottsdale should be at the top of your to-do list, because if not managed properly, the costs may get away from you, and that could easily add up to additional thousands of dollars in premium. Most company owners will testify, work-related injuries can be quite expensive, time-consuming, and, in rare cases, be tragic and a legal quagmire, to say the least. Work-related injuries can be so vastly different from one company to another, from a slip and fall due to a slick floor, falling off a ladder or roof, a repetitive motion injury, cutting your finger, arm, or worst case, an unfortunate death.

It’s very important that a company should choose the proper workers compensation insurance based on their particular compensation needs, as well as doing everything possible to provide a safe work environment.

PJO Insurance Brokerage has access to various workers comp insurance carriers, and PJO also has worker’s comp markets for those hard to place industries like roofers, welders, framers, and long & short haul drivers, to name just a few trades. If you are looking for workers’ compensation insurance for your business, please call or email us, and let PJO Insurance Brokerage find a workers’ comp insurance carrier to suit your company’s needs.

Written By:

PJO Insurance Brokerage – Patrick O’ Neill

4103 East Prickly Pear Trail
Phoenix, Arizona 85050

Office: 480-248-7495
Email: Patrick@PJOBrokerage.com
Website: https://pjobrokerage.com