What exactly is WORKERS Compensation Insurance?

It's a contract issued to the business owner that covers them with insurance for the costs of accidents at work to employees. The type of insurance is designed to pay for all costs associated with an injury to a worker such as medical bills and lost wages, rehabilitation and even permanent disability or death. The benefits covered under a workers' compensation policy are determined through the state's worker' insurance regulatory body.

HOW IS WORKERS' COMPENSATION PREMIUM DETERMINED?

This is quite easy. The premium is a proportion of your estimated pay roll during the policy period. Since the risk of injuries to workers varies by the kind of work they do, each business is assigned a certain classification that reflects the level of risk they face in their particular industry. For instance, if you run a convenience store which stays open later than 11:00 pm, your worker classification code for workers' compensation would be 8061 - Store - Convenience -retail. Make sure to note both the classification code and the description are set by the state government under article 11658, which is part of the California Insurance Code. There are about 500 classifications that are issued by the state in order to cover each business, industry and even the state of California. The cost of any classification will be determined by the degree of danger to injuries that occur in the particular industry that it is a part of. i.e. A convenience store's premium rate is lower than a construction contractor's and is higher than a telemarketing firm's. workers compensation

DO I HAVE TO HAVE WORKERS Compensation Insurance?

If you run an establishment in the state of California and you employ employees, you're mandated by the state labor commission to have workers insurance for compensation. The only businesses which are exempt from this requirement are those that are run exclusively by the proprietors with no employees. In other words, if you have any employees including temporary or seasonal part-time assistance, you must have workers' compensation insurance. If you don't have it you run the risk of large fines and possibly shut down of your business. An employee is considered to be anyone who works for the business and is not an owner in law. Family members, including children of the owner, who work on behalf of the business are considered employees, even if those relatives or children are giving

Time without payment.

There is another reason for having an insurance policy for workers' compensation, and that is to protect yourself from financial catastrophe. The medical costs associated with treating injured workers as well as the loss of wages and other costs associated to it can be difficult for big or small-sized business and could cause financial risk to their assets.

ARE OWNERS COVERED UNDER A WORKERS' COMPENSATION POLICY?

They are covered only if they would like to be. That is, owners have the choice to exclude or include themselves from the coverage. That means if they are covered under the insurance plan, they also have the right to benefits in the event that they become injured. If you decide to include yourself, your pay-roll would be considered into the computation of the workers compensation premium. It is also possible to exclude yourself from coverage; in this case you won't be charged the amount for your payroll.

Who's thought to be A OWNER?

Who is exempt is determined based on the legal status of ownership of your business. The three most common legal entities of ownership used by businesses are:

1. Sole proprietorship or individual ownership If this is the case, the owner, their spouse and their resident relatives can be exempt from coverage. work accident

2. Partnership - All partners can be excluded, but spouses and relatives are not excluded.

3. Corporation - Shareholders who are officers may be excluded only if officers own all the shares of a company. Officers that do not own shares or share holders who are not officers can not be exempted. Families and spouses can't be excluded...