One of the biggest concerns for many businesses is the potential of worker's compensation claims. Sometimes it feels like it's an uncontrollable risk. The truth is that while you can't eliminate every possible work-related injury, there are some things that you can do to moderate your worker's compensation costs. Here are a few tips that you can implement now to help you control those expenses.
Institute Solid Safety Procedures
Take time to thoroughly understand the OSHA recommendations for your industry. Once you have a solid understanding of the recommended safety guidelines, you will be better prepared for minimizing your risk of accidents. In fact, many workplace accidents are the direct result of poor safety training or lack of compliance with OSHA safety regulations.
Develop some safety procedures that are based upon the OSHA recommendations. Once they've been designed, you can put them in writing and distribute them to your workforce. Make those safety recommendations a requirement for your daily operations. Everyone should be held to those standards so that there are no questions about expectations.
Don't Take Claims At Face Value
Any time you have a claim filed against your worker's compensation insurance, you risk an increase in your premiums. If you want to minimize those increases, you need to make sure that you investigate every claim thoroughly. This will help you to reduce instances of false reporting. Have your entire management team trained on how to recognize false reports and then require that every claim be researched. Stay in touch with the employee involved, their medical team, and everyone else that is involved in the process. Ask for copies of reports and keep a file so that you have documentation of everything.
Reduce The Time Spent Out Of Work
One of the most costly parts of a worker's compensation claim is the salary replacement while a worker is out due to the injury. When you minimize the amount of time spent out of work, you help to reduce the costs associated with the claims. This can help you keep your policy premiums lower.
One of the best ways to do this is by instituting a plan that encourages employees to return to work, even if it means offering accommodations or changing the dynamic of their position until they can return to full duty. That keeps your costs down per claim and may help you to minimize the premium increases associated with claims since they're based on the total cost of your company's paid claims. Talk to a company, like Brown & Brown of Prescott, for more help.
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