Reputation: 376
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Total posts: 49
I believe the legal angle only involves their OSHA 300 log - as long as the company is keeping a comprehensive compilation of all workplace injuries for their OSHA log, then they are compliant with the law. If they take the extra step of reporting the claim to their WC carrier as an "incident only", with no corresponding medical bills, there will be no impact to the Experience Mod. The only ramification is if an Insurance Company measures frequency as a strong UW characteristic, the Insured might face re-pricing or non-renewal due to loss frequency (but that would be a legit issue, as the claims actually occurred). Paying their small claims is a little bit like the concept of early "return to work" - in lieu of the Insurance Company paying for the indemnity portion of the claim, the Employer pays the Employee their regular wage out of payroll. Another angle you can compare the process of paying the small claims is an self-imposed deductible or a version of self-insurance. Therefore, it shouldn't be looked at negatively if the Insured is participating in the cost/process of their WC claims, as long as they are being 'reported' to the proper authorities (OSHA). Final thought, the Insurance Company has a vested interest in knowing the claims activity if one of these 'unreported' claims takes a wrong turn and becomes a more serious claim - therefore, you might want to communicate with the WC carrier on this potential change in your Risk Mgmt approach on small claims and even offer to send them a copy of your OSHA 300 log on a monthly/quarterly basis.