WCIRB Unveils Insolvent Insurer Rating Adjustment Plan

On Nov. 10, 2003, California Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi issued a decision with respect to the Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau’s (WCIRB) Jan. 1, 2004 Regulatory Filing. In the decision, the WCIRB was directed to develop an advisory rating plan that an insurer could use to adjust the premium charge for an employer who no longer qualifies for experience rating due to the lack of data from an insolvent insurer.

With input from insurers, the California Department of Insurance (CDI) Administrative Hearing Bureau, and the representative of the public members of the WCIRB governing committee, the WCIRB has developed the advisory Insolvent Insurer Rating Adjustment Plan. The plan is advisory in that insurers are neither required nor obligated to use it in developing their own underwriting rules and rating plans. Though not subject to the insurance commissioner’s approval, the plan has been submitted to the insurance commissioner for review.

Additional information concerning the use of this plan are contained in WCIRB Bulletin 2004-02. The WCIRB Bulletin and the Insolvent Insurer Rating Adjustment Plan may be viewed by registered users of WCIRB Online™. To view these documents, login to WCIRB Online and select “Information Releases” to view the bulletin or “Advisory Manuals and Plans” to view the plan.

Hardcopies of the plan and the WCIRB Bulletin may be purchased from the WCIRB by completing a products and services order form. Please use the following information to complete the order form. Insolvent Insurer Rating Adjustment Plan: Catalog Number #AD0011M, Selection Criteria 2004, and Price $20. WCIRB Bulletin: Catalog Number #AD0025M, Selection Criteria 2004-02, and Price $25.