Massachusetts Workers Compensation Lawyers Blog
A recently released study published in the latest issue of Public Health Reports stated that the premium rates in the country have increased while interest rates on U.S. Treasury bonds and the Dow Jones Industrial Average have decreased, according to Futurity.
Our Boston workers compensation attorneys understand that companies have recently been calculating their premium rates in comparison to their company’s returns from bond markets and stocks. Unfortunately, there are a lot of companies that are no longer calculating their premiums off of the number of claims that have been filed, which most likely has dropped significantly in recent years. We understand that companies are investing to receive a nice little monetary cushion to pay for existing claims. Unfortunately, when these companies that fail to collect on the fluffy cushion, then your premiums are upped in an attempt to regain their losses.
All too often, large companies play the game this way. They lower benefits for existing employees to help maximize their profits. Oftentimes it’s the employees who are injured or disabled that are the ones that suffer in this setup. This is yet another example of how these rates are not properly adjusted in accordance to the number of claims filed or reports of work-related accidents in Massachusetts and elsewhere.
Workers compensation trends are extremely important in organizing and finalizing premium costs. Policymakers use this information so that they can create regulations that can help to protect employees and can keep costs in order. The recent data that should be examined for new policies should come from the 2009 statistics that reported that there were approximately 3.5 billion reports of work-related illness of injuries. These reports cost employers about $74 billion.
Starting back in 1992, cases that required more than 30 days off the job were reported to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Since the collection of this data, many researchers have sifted through the information in search of vital information, including the correlation between severe injuries and the effect of premium costs.
Researchers have concluded that even though the number of claims has decreased every year from 1992 to 2007, the rate of premiums continued to increase. Another key finding in this information is that the increase in premiums mirrored the Dow Jones Industrial Average and Treasury bonds.
Ironically, the number of injured workers had nothing to do with the rates of these increasing premiums. Unfortunately, policy makers oftentimes point the finger at accident statistics for the high premium rate hikes and the two have nothing to do with each other.
The bottom line is that legislators and insurance commissioners should focus directly on accident reports and claim rates when calculating premiums instead of focusing on insurance companies’ returns on investments. Workers have the right to be provided with fail and quality workers’ compensation.
If you or a loved one has been injured on the job, contact Jeffrey Glassman Injury Lawyers to help you file a claim or to have the intricacies of your case explained to you. Call (617) 777-7777 for a free no-obligation appointment.
More Blog Entries:
Manufacturer Fined $175,500 for Failing to Prevent Work Accident in Massachusetts, Massachusetts Workers Compensation Lawyers Blog, October 2, 2011
Company Faces $920,000 in Fines after Middleton Work Accident, Massachusetts Workers Compensation Lawyers Blog, September 15, 2011