The first of the year is a good time to take a step back and look at your Workers’ Compensation program and assess your strengths and weaknesses.

1. Do you know your lowest possible Experience Modification Factor?
Even if your Mod is low, working towards the lowest possible Mod is the best way to ensure long-term savings.

2. Have you reviewed your Injury and Illness Prevention Program (IIPP) recently?
The IIPP should be a living document that is updated when new equipment or practices are introduced and changed with the company’s size or functions.

3. How effective is your hiring process?
If injuries occurred shortly after hiring, the hiring and training process should be examined. Having a consistent process for background checks and medical exams help prevent hiring the wrong person for a job.

4. When was the last supervisors’ training?
Supervisors play a key role in the management of injuries as well as staff morale. Consistent training in both the functional and human relationship aspects of their jobs is essential to be sure they have the confidence and skills to create a high performance culture within their team.

5. How quickly are claims reported?
If claims are not reported within 24 hours of the incident, there is work to be done.

6. If the accident investigation reveals measures that should be taken to prevent future incidents, how quickly are they addressed?
The employers’ response to an injury sends a critical message to employees. In addition to a thorough investigative process, employers should have a response process in place – what are the options to resolve the problem, who is responsible for insuring changes are made and implemented, and how is this communicated to employees.

7. How often are open claims and reserves reviewed?
Excessive time lags in care or claims may indicate that a case can be spiraling out of control. At a minimum, open claims and reserves should be reviewed quarterly.

8. How many of your claims are litigated?
Ideally, a 5% litigation rate is very good, 10-15% is good and anything over 20% should be considered a red flag and warrant further analysis.

9. Is your return to work program working properly?
The sluggish economy and uncertainty over the sustainability of the recovery has put pressure on return to work programs. Examine your program to see if the jobs are meaningful, truly transitional, and meeting established metrics to return the injured employee to their original position in a timely fashion.

10. Are you and your employees prepared for an OSHA visit?
OSHA has an aggressive agenda. If it’s been awhile since you’ve done a walkthrough to identify potential problems, reviewed your recordkeeping training documentation, written safety and health programs or discussed the procedure should an inspector appear, now is the time to do it.

11. How effective are your medical cost controls?
The medical management of a Workers’ Comp claim is essential to reducing costs. Evaluate your relationships with medical providers and medical bill review processes to be sure they are working for you and your injured employee.

12. Is your agent helping you improve your workers’ compensation program?
If the answer is NO, consider using a Certified WorkComp Advisor and see how we are helping our clients increase their profitability by lowering work comp costs. UNICO was recently named the National Work Comp Agency of the Year by the Institute of Work Comp Professionals.  We are full service insurance broker serving all of Nebraska from Personal Lines, Health Insurance to Commercial Insurance, working with many great companies like Allied Insurance…a Nationwide company on your side!  Call us today and start saving!

by Carl Zeutzius, CWCA
UNICO Group Inc
http://unicogroup.com/
402-434-7200

Carl Zeutzius has 18 years of experience in helping businesses address their risk management needs.
He is a Certified work comp advisor and UNICO is the only agency in the state with that designation.