It seems finally that someone is calling for SCIF to be accounted for. Having worked in several departments there for over 10 years, I am well versed in the political and business dealings of the company. SCIF’s attitude has been that they can do no wrong, that without SCIF, the employers of Calif would all go belly-up. What isn’t discussed anywhere that I have seen is the political shinanegans that go on. The “special” unit created to get rid of PEO’s and prevent Temporary Employment Agencies from getting worker comp insurance. The hidden “merit” discounts that are totally subjective and based solely on the underwriters’ opinions as to whether or not they like the employer, or what their supervisor tells them to put. I have seen specific employers targeted for increases in premium using the “merit” rating, not based on objective findings but on the decision to prevent this employer from getting insurance.
I could write a book about the fiasco that SCIF’s claims handling has been, but I would rather comment on the above rulling. It sure would be interesting to find out how SCIF is covering themselves financially in case it is determined they have been underreserving. Employers were promised by the Governor that Worker Comp Insurance prices would go down. Obviously the costs have gone down because injured workers are being punitively punished by having treatment and other benefits denied across the board. SCIF’s Loss Ratio has also gone down, leading me to believe that the adjusters were told to lower the estimates on all claims. Yet employers are not seeing the discounts applied to their policies. 5% is nothing when you reflect the rate increases over the last several years. So where is the money SCIF? Since they are suppose to be non-profit, either there are some very special employers getting large dividends back, or my guess is that SCIF has a special account created to cover if the Department of Insurance wins. Either way, SCIF is making money off of this. And everyone else is losing.
It seems finally that someone is calling for SCIF to be accounted for. Having worked in several departments there for over 10 years, I am well versed in the political and business dealings of the company. SCIF’s attitude has been that they can do no wrong, that without SCIF, the employers of Calif would all go belly-up. What isn’t discussed anywhere that I have seen is the political shinanegans that go on. The “special” unit created to get rid of PEO’s and prevent Temporary Employment Agencies from getting worker comp insurance. The hidden “merit” discounts that are totally subjective and based solely on the underwriters’ opinions as to whether or not they like the employer, or what their supervisor tells them to put. I have seen specific employers targeted for increases in premium using the “merit” rating, not based on objective findings but on the decision to prevent this employer from getting insurance.
I could write a book about the fiasco that SCIF’s claims handling has been, but I would rather comment on the above rulling. It sure would be interesting to find out how SCIF is covering themselves financially in case it is determined they have been underreserving. Employers were promised by the Governor that Worker Comp Insurance prices would go down. Obviously the costs have gone down because injured workers are being punitively punished by having treatment and other benefits denied across the board. SCIF’s Loss Ratio has also gone down, leading me to believe that the adjusters were told to lower the estimates on all claims. Yet employers are not seeing the discounts applied to their policies. 5% is nothing when you reflect the rate increases over the last several years. So where is the money SCIF? Since they are suppose to be non-profit, either there are some very special employers getting large dividends back, or my guess is that SCIF has a special account created to cover if the Department of Insurance wins. Either way, SCIF is making money off of this. And everyone else is losing.