Latest Workers' Compensation Headlines
All the headlines from our Workers' Compensation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Former Washington Logger Charged in Nearly $300K Workers’ Comp Scam
Jun 7 2021 // A Cowlitz County, Wash., man stands accused of faking injuries to collect nearly $300,000 in workers’ compensation benefits. James Joseph Thomasson, 52, of Kalama, was arraigned in Thurston County Superior Court on...
Cal/OSHA Cites Foster Farms, Agencies for COVID-19 Violations
Jun 7 2021 // Cal/OSHA has cited Foster Poultry Farms Inc. in Livingston, Calif., and four staffing agencies for not protecting workers from COVID-19. Cal/OSHA opened its inspection after receiving notification that an employee had died...
Workers’ Comp Insurer SUNZ Expands into 13 Additional States
Jun 1 2021 // Florida-based SUNZ Insurance Co. is now licensed to write workers’ compensation policies in 13 additional states: Colorado, Hawaii, Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah,...
CWCI: California Workers’ Comp Direct Written Premium Fell 11.4% in 2020
May 28 2021 // Total direct written premium in the California workers’ compensation system fell by 11.4% in 2020, dropping to an eight-year low driven by the ongoing decline in insurers’ average charged rates and relatively...
Wild Well Catches Fire in Louisiana; Workers Injured
May 27 2021 // At least seven people were injured when a wild well in a coastal Louisiana marsh caught fire while they were trying to control it, news outlets report. The owners said that the fire was out within two hours after it...
Former Washington Logger Charged in Nearly $300K Workers’ Comp Scam
May 25 2021 // A Cowlitz County, Wash., man stands accused of faking injuries to collect nearly $300,000 in workers’ compensation benefits. James Joseph Thomasson, 52, of Kalama, is scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday in Thurston...
Cal/OSHA Cites Foster Farms, Staffing Agencies for COVID-19 Violations
May 24 2021 // Cal/OSHA has cited Foster Poultry Farms Inc. in Livingston, Calif., and four staffing agencies for not protecting workers from COVID-19. Cal/OSHA opened its inspection after receiving notification that an employee had died...
Florida Construction Co. Owner Arrested for Evading Payment of Workers’ Comp Premium
May 21 2021 // The owner of a Florida construction business has been arrested for allegedly concealing payroll information to avoid paying more than $718,000 in workers’ compensation premiums, according to a statement from the...
Outlooks Revised to Positive for Workers’ Comp Insurer Stonetrust
May 20 2021 // AM Best has revised the outlooks to positive from stable and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of B++ (Good) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings of “bbb+” (Good) of Stonetrust Commercial Insurance Co....
California Contractor Arrested in Nearly $1M Workers’ Comp Scheme
May 17 2021 // Carolyn Plaza of Fresno, Calif., self-surrendered on May 6 after a warrant for her arrest was issued on six felony counts of insurance fraud. A complaint filed on April 16, alleges Plaza underreported more than $3 million...
California Flooring Business Owners Charged for $3.8M Workers’ Comp Fraud
May 14 2021 // Ryan Black, 45, formerly of Fair Oaks, Calif., and Curtis Davis, 53, of Penryn, were both charged this week with three felony counts of workers’ compensation fraud after allegedly underreporting payroll and employees...
New Oklahoma Workers’ Comp Fraud Law Goes in Effect Nov. 1
May 14 2021 // Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt on May 7 signed into law legislation creating new penalties for workers’ compensation fraud. The legislative summary for House Bill 2236 states that anyone “failing to report to an...
Zywave Buys Workers’ Comp Software Firm Modgic
May 14 2021 // Insurance technology provider Zywave has acquired Modgic, an Oregon-based provider of workers’ compensation and experience modification analysis software for the commercial insurance industry. Financial terms were...
Report: California Workers’ Comp Written Premium Down in 2020
May 13 2021 // Written premium for 2020 was 13% below the previous year, and was at the lowest since 2012, a new report out on Thursday shows. The Workers’ Compensation Rating Bureau of California Quarterly Experience Report, which...
Florida Man Accused of Failing to Pay $193K in Workers’ Comp Premium
May 13 2021 // A Florida man has been arrested for workers’ compensation premium fraud and additional charges for allegedly concealing payroll information to avoid paying more than $193,000 in workers’ compensation premiums,...
Workers’ Compensation Numbers Indicate Strong Performance During 2020 Pandemic
May 12 2021 // Because of job losses and shrinking payrolls during the pandemic recession, the workers’ compensation industry’s net written premium dropped 10% to $42 billion in 2020. However, private insurers posted a...
Miami Construction Co. Owner Arrested in $88K Workers’ Comp Fraud Scheme
May 11 2021 // A construction company owner was arrested in Florida this month for workers’ compensation premium fraud and grand theft for allegedly concealing payroll information to avoid paying more than $88,000 in workers’...
California Contractor Arrested in Nearly $1M Workers’ Comp Scheme
May 6 2021 // Carolyn Plaza of Fresno, Calif., self-surrendered on May 6 after a warrant for her arrest was issued on six felony counts of insurance fraud. A complaint filed on April 16, alleges Plaza underreported more than $3 million...
No Delays Found in Medical Care for Workers’ Compensation Claimants During COVID
May 3 2021 // Despite potential obstacles posed by the coronavirus pandemic, injured workers experienced no meaningful delays in access to medical treatment under their employers’ workers’ compensation programs during the...
Returning to Work After COVID Workers’ Comp in a Post-COVID World
May 3 2021 // As the U.S. economy tumbled in March 2020 at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic millions of people were forced to leave their jobs. A year later, U.S. unemployment is at 6% in March 2021, down from 6.2% in February....
