With proper management of workers' compensation claims, you can reduce your business workplace injury insurance costs in La Canada, CA. You'll want to avoid liability for fraudulent claims, which can increase your workers' comp insurance premiums. Similarly, you don't want to be too aggressive in rejecting claims because that may bring you unnecessary and costly litigation costs.
Read on to learn how to manage workers' compensation claims and minimize costs while complying with applicable laws.
Follow these tips to cost-effectively manage your workers' compensation program.
By creating a safe work environment, you can keep your workers' compensation premiums in check. That entails complying with all relevant OSHA standards and regulations meant to eliminate or minimize the risk of work-related injuries. You can also reduce the frequency of on-the-job injuries by pre-screening applicants for physically demanding or risky positions.
You can control compensation costs by attending to any workplace injury immediately after it has occurred. Typically, your management team should know that hesitating to report a claim can increase its cost. You can avoid costly reporting delays by ensuring that supervisors and a safety team member get to the scene of the incident as soon as possible to gather information and help the injured worker.
Once an employee has filed a claim, you'll want to work closely with the insurance adjuster in reviewing the facts of the case. You may be able to identify abuse by examining records associated with any claim. For example, watch out for any extended claim that includes injuries or body parts not directly related to the workplace incident in question.
Implement procedures and rules to guide the assessment of workers' compensation claims for fraud in your workplace. Fraudulent workers' comp claims may include:
Always have a manager or medical worker closely follow an injured employee's recovery throughout the claim duration. You'll want to confirm whether the employee follows the treatment plan recommended by their industrial doctor. That's necessary since non-compliance may aggravate the condition, delay recovery, and increase the claim amount.
Unnecessary use of expensive treatment options like high-cost opioids after a workplace injury may increase your workers' compensation costs. You'll want to work closely with your insurer in observing the victim's use of prescription medication to treat their work injury.
A claimant's return to work signals the end of their workers' compensation benefits. As such, have a plan in place to guarantee the recovered employee's timely return to work. Aiding the claimant in this way can help minimize social isolation effects. Consider the quality of the employee's interactions with their colleagues in the workplace, the distance between their home and the workplace, and other factors as you help with their return to work.
An injured worker can still include Medicare set-asides (MSAs), which are potentially long-term costs, in their compensation claims. You can keep such costs in check by encouraging the claimant during settlement negotiations to stop using drugs that don't help. You may also negotiate with the worker to minimize the costs resulting from other ongoing claims.
These are some of the ways you can manage workers' compensation claims and reduce your workplace injury insurance costs. With proper claims management, you can have your insurance policy work efficiently for both your business and employees. Contact the experts at Knight Insurance Services in La Canada Flintridge, CA, today to learn more about getting an ideal workers' compensation policy. Our dedicated team is eager to assist you with all your coverage needs today.
