Missouri Department Of Commerce And Insurance Recommends Workers' Compensation Rate Decrease For Employers In 2023

JEFFERSON CITY, Missouri, Nov. 22 -- The Missouri Department of Insurance issued the following news release:

The Missouri Department of Commerce and Insurance (DCI) is recommending a 6.4 percent decrease in workers' compensation insurance loss costs for 2023. This marks the seventh time in eight years that average workers' compensation rates will decrease.

The 6.4 percent decrease in loss costs between Jan. 1, 2022 and Jan. 1, 2023 is driven by data collected on an annual basis showing a steady decline in lost-time claim frequencies. Since 2006, the cumulative change in claim frequency has decreased more than 32 percent. From 2015-2019, injury claims per worker also decreased and were less severe in nature.

"Safer work places and improved risk management are the two main factors driving rates down for Missouri employers," said Missouri DCI Director Chlora Lindley-Myers. "We applaud employers for continuing to make safety improvements in the workplace to protect their teams. The market remains highly competitive with over 300 insurers actively writing workers' compensation business in the state and I encourage employers to shop around for the best rates."

DCI provides an online rate checker to assist employers with comparison shopping.

Workers' compensation was mandated in Missouri by state law in 1925 and is a "no-fault" insurance system that pays benefits to workers injured on the job to cover medical care, part of lost wages and permanent disability. In return, employers receive immunity from civil lawsuits by employees over such workplace injuries.

Employers meet their workers' compensation obligation by purchasing insurance or by becoming a state-certified self-insurer. DCI reviews and approves workers' compensation insurance policy forms and rules. The department also monitors workers' compensation market competitiveness and oversees the "assigned risk pool" to ensure fair rates and good service.

Every year, the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI), an industry-funded group, files advisory loss costs with DCI. Both the NCCI and the department are proposing an overall loss cost decrease of 6.4 percent for policies effective Jan. 1, 2023.

The NCCI's proposed average changes in loss costs by industry group are shown below:

Manufacturing: -6.2%

Contracting: -8.2%

Office and Clerical: -8.7%

Goods and Services: -5.8%

Miscellaneous: -4.4%

The NCCI's 2023 loss cost filing and the department's independent actuarial review are available on DCI's website.

The Division of Workers' Compensation of the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations oversees the day-to-day operation of the workers' compensation system. To learn more, visit our Workers' Compensation FAQs website.

DCI is charged with protecting Missouri consumers through oversight of the insurance industry, banks, credit unions, utilities and various professional licensees operating in the state. For more information on DCI, please visit our website at dci.mo.gov.

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Original text here: https://insurance.mo.gov/news/newsitem/uuid/80be476a-3735-43ce-97d9-c6b9a354514d