Delivering Creative Workers’ Comp Solutions for Small Businesses
Workers’ Compensation is a significant cost of operating a business, with many firms looking for a competitive solution as well as ways to control losses. Small businesses that make up the fabric of our communities especially find it challenging to keep costs in line as they grow, while others are experiencing rate increases as a result of overall market changes even though their payroll exposures have remained unchanged. At Associated Insurance Specialty Agency (ASIA), we can help you provide your small business clients with affordable solutions that meet their needs.
Obtain preferred access to markets with ASIA
We work with a number of markets and due to our significant volume of business and longstanding relationships, we can often offer you better results than you would have with direct access to those markets, particularly in getting certain risks quoted and written. Additionally, our agency partners benefit from how easy it is do business with us, which in turn benefits your clients and enables you to provide the quality of service that separates you from your competitors.
We can provide you with quotes on mono-line business for small to midsize companies, including “main street” businesses and specific classes such as: artisan contractors, beauty shops, buildings operations by owners or contractors, doctors and dentists, grocery stores, hotels, machine shops, private schools, professional offices, restaurants, retail stores and wholesale stores. Workplace safety, loss control expertise and timely and responsive claims handling and settlement are also part of our Workers’ Comp programs to help your clients mitigate risk and get workers back on the job as soon as they can.
In addition, our exclusive New Jersey Small Business Owners Dividend Program through AmTrust is available for select classes, including hospitality, restaurants, professional offices, retail exposures, artisan contractors and light manufacturing.
We also have a proprietary Artisan Workers’ Compensation Contractors Program, which includes the ability to write one or two-man operations, often with no prior Workers’ Comp coverage.
Turn to Us for Workers’ Comp Solutions for Large Accounts
Many large companies look for alternative Workers’ Compensations solutions, including self-insurance, Large-Deductible programs, and Retrospective Rating plans, to take greater control over costs while providing the benefits needed to meet their obligation to provide indemnification for on-the-job injuries, illnesses and accidents.
Insurance wholesaler Associated Insurance Specialty Agency (ASIA) has access to Workers’ Comp markets that specialize in working with large accounts. Among the solutions we can provide are:
Guaranteed Cost Plans: Under this traditional plan, the billed premium is determined at the beginning of the policy period and is not subject to adjustment as a result of loss experience. The policy is manually rated, adjusted by a loss cost multiplier (if applicable) and an experience modification. The adjusted rate is then multiplied by payroll. The only adjustment to the original billed premium is at expiration. A final audit of the actual payroll versus the original estimated amount is completed at that time.
Large-Deductible Plans: A form of self-insurance, this is ideal for accounts paying $500,000 or more in Workers’ Comp premiums. This plan allows for large insureds to self-insure their Workers’ Compensation risks without having to satisfy burdensome filing requirements for self-insurance. An insured is responsible for the first portion of any loss, with the insurer providing excess coverage over the deductible amount and possibly for all losses above a certain aggregate. The insured funds an account (loss fund) to pay losses and the insured reimburses the fund as losses are paid. The insured must collateralize, usually by letter of credit, an amount approximately equal to the difference between paid and ultimate losses.
Retrospective Rating Plans: The ultimate premium under this plan is determined after the policy expires, or retrospectively, and is ideal for accounts paying between $150,000-$500,000 in premium. The final premium is determined based on the actual losses of the policyholder, and under these plans, collateral or a letter of credit for future losses is typically not required. These plans are for accounts with an active role in controlling losses, as the premium ultimately charged in a Retro plan can be significantly lower than a Guaranteed Cost alternative. The ability to predict losses accurately and reasonably is an important consideration in determining what factors work best for your client’s exposures and experience. All of the factors — basic, minimum, maximum and loss conversion factor — can be varied to match any insured’s particular situation.
Our Exclusive New Jersey Small Business Owners Workers’ Comp Dividend Program
Associated Insurance Specialty Agency (ASIA) is proud to make available our Small Business Owners Workers’ Comp Dividend Program to your small business clients throughout the Garden State. The dividend program is for new business submissions only and is written with A- rated AmTrust exclusively through ASIA.
Some of the program’s features include:
- $1,500 minimum premium
- Sliding scale dividend up to 15% depending on premium size and incurred loss ratio
- Schedule Credit and/or Managed Care Credit also available on a case-by-case basis
Over 200 classes are eligible. Target classes under this program include:
- Hospitality
- Restaurants
- Professional Offices
- Retail Exposures
- Artisan Contractors
- Light Manufacturing
Most new ventures in the hospitality and retail classes are eligible for the program. Artisan Contractors require three years with prior Workers’ Comp coverage to be eligible for the Dividend Program, however, we do write new venture Artisan Contractors based upon their prior industry experience.