Workers’ Compensation Insurance
Accidents happen in the workplace, no matter what precautions you have in place. Workers’ compensation insurance is designed to help cover the costs associated with a work-related injury or illness. We’re here to help you sort through business insurance, including workers’ compensation insurance benefits. Contact us today to get started.
What Is Workers’ Compensation Insurance?
Workers’ compensation insurance is a type of business insurance policy that provides benefits to employees if they suffer work-related illnesses or injuries. Workers’ compensation benefits typically include coverage for paying for medical care and lost wages from time missed from work.
Employers also benefit from workers’ compensation insurance, as it can help protect your business from lawsuits and keep it compliant with state regulations.
What Are Workers’ Compensation Benefits?
Workers’ compensation may provide various benefits to employees who experience an injury or illness, including:
- Medical benefits—Employees may receive compensation to cover doctor appointments, hospital visits and medications.
- Wage-loss benefits—If an employee cannot return to work at total capacity, wage-loss benefits may help them supplement their lost income. This benefit may last until the employee has recovered or until the wage-loss benefit limit has been reached.
- Vocational rehabilitation benefits—Employees may receive access to vocational rehab services to help them learn new skills and reenter the workforce after an injury.
- Death/dependent benefits—If an employee loses their life because of a work-related injury or illness, workers’ compensation may help cover funeral costs and lost income. These benefits are typically provided to the spouse or dependents of the deceased.
Worker’s compensation laws vary by state, which may impact the limits and duration of benefits and the type of employers required to have it. Reach out to an agent to discuss specific requirements for your business.
Do I Need Workers Compensation Insurance?
Employers have a legal responsibility to their employees to make the workplace safe. However, accidents happen even when every reasonable safety measure has been taken. To protect employers from lawsuits resulting from workplace accidents and to provide medical care and compensation for lost income to employees hurt in workplace accidents, in almost every state, businesses are required to buy workers compensation insurance. Workers compensation insurance covers workers injured on the job, whether they’re hurt on the workplace premises or elsewhere, or in auto accidents while on business. It also covers work-related illnesses.
Workers compensation provides payments to injured workers, without regard to who was at fault in the accident, for time lost from work and for medical and rehabilitation services. It also provides death benefits to surviving spouses and dependents.
Each state has different laws governing the amount and duration of lost income benefits, the provision of medical and rehabilitation services and how the system is administered. For example, in most states there are regulations that cover whether the worker or employer can choose the doctor who treats the injuries and how disputes about benefits are resolved.
Workers compensation insurance must be bought as a separate policy. Although in-home business and business owners policies (BOPs) are sold as package policies, they don’t include coverage for workers’ injuries.
How to Get Workers’ Compensation
We’re ready to help you secure workers’ compensation coverage for your business. Contact WatchTower Insurance today for more information or a quote.