Florida OIR approves an 8/4% Decrease in Work Comp Rates for 2023

OIR Approves an 8.4% Decrease in
Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rates for 2023

Florida Insurance Commissioner David Altmaier issued a Final Order granting approval to the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI) for a statewide overall workers’ compensation insurance rate decrease of 8.4 percent. The rate decrease applies to both new and renewal workers’ compensation insurance policies effective in Florida as of January 1, 2023.

The Florida Division of Workers Compensation will hold a workshop Nov. 16 on proposed changes to rules that govern when and how corporate officers can exempt themselves from workers’ compensation coverage.

Current rules mandate that only those businesses organized under state law requirements will qualify as corporations that can issue certificates allowing officers to exempt themselves from comp requirements. The proposed rules, shown here, make a number of revisions, including deleting a section that allows regulators to deny exemptions from companies that are not eligible.

The new rules note that the exemption form will be returned if it is incomplete or inaccurate. An applicant has 90 days to correct deficiencies. The rules also would require that corporate officers requesting exemption must certify that they have completed online compliance tutorials. And an officer must provide a drivers’ license or a Florida identification card.

Other proposed changes address procedures after penalties have been assessed.
“If the employer was issued a stop-work order, then the employer will have twenty business days after service of the first amended order of penalty assessment to provide business records sufficient for the department to determine the employer’s payroll, and the employer’s penalty will be recalculated” in accordance with Florida statutes.

It’s unclear if the rule changes are related to an issue that has been simmering in the workers’ compensation kitchen for the past few years. Insurance Journal reported in August that some comp insurance carriers have routinely charged premium for corporate officers or subcontractors that have exempted themselves, as allowed by Florida law.

The National Council on Compensation Insurance in 2019 posted a reminder that officers of a corporation who elect to be exempt from comp insurance “must not be included in premium calculation.” Yet, some carriers have continued to charge unless complete documentation is provided, sources have said.

The workshop is set for Nov. 16 at 9:30 a.m. Eastern time. Stakeholders can join via the GoToMeeting platform https://meet.goto.com/866262381, or by phone. The call-in number is +1 (571) 317-3116; the access code is 866-262-381.