Employers are well aware that a litigated workers’ comp claim is an expensive claim, but new data puts in clearer focus exactly how much more they will pay come settlement time once attorneys are involved. The average difference based on attorney involvement alone is an extra $54,401 per indemnity claim, but this average amount can …
Spinal disorders with spinal cord or root involvement are one of the most expensive job injury categories in the state, consuming 6.9% of all payments, equaling in the aggregate more than $2 billion, according to the latest research from the California Workers’ Compensation Institute (CWCI). These disorders represent just 1.4% of the claims, yet the …
Average medical spend in the California workers’ comp system has moved well above its pre-reform levels as doctors use more expensive treatments more often to help injured workers recover. But employer and insurer expenses to battle this trend are climbing at an even faster rate and adding to the overall costs, according to a new …
Through the first quarter of the year, California’s workers’ comp carriers have raised the average rate they charge the state’s employers by 3% as they gained ground on the system’s underlying costs. The Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau (WCIRB) estimates that the industry’s loss ratio through the period is 71% — a two-point decline from …
The frequency of indemnity claims was 2% lower in the first six months of the year compared to the same period in 2007, but the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau reports that average costs of these claims is continuing on its upward trend. This is exciting stuff, we know, but wait, there’s even more. The …