Agent News
CompWest Quarterly Q3 2019
Third Quarter 2019
As we close out 2019, I want to express my gratitude for our tremendous agent partners. We’ve accomplished a lot this year!
Our success wouldn’t be possible without partners like you, who know our business and industry inside out. We were happy to see so many expand their workers’ comp knowledge by successfully completing our Certified Authority on Workers’ Compensation (CAWC) course, and we are excited to share new education opportunities in 2020.
We’re also proud to be part of the collective strength of the AF Group enterprise. In the past several weeks, AF Group and our brands have received several significant accolades that we’re excited to celebrate with you.
Our A.M. Best Rating was recently upgraded from “A-” to “A” (Excellent) with a “stable” outlook. This great news is an indicator of our continued financial strength and strong net income, underwriting income and surplus growth along with record-setting premium retention.
We were also recently recognized as a Ward’s 50 company, an award presented to top insurance industry performers who demonstrate consistent superior performance. For this honor, Ward’s examined nearly 3,000 property/casualty and life/health insurance companies, and their recognition of AF Group was based on our outstanding financial results “in the areas of safety, consistency, and performance over a five-year period.”
Lastly, AF Group has once again been named to the list of “Best Places to Work in Insurance” by Business Insurance magazine! This is our 10th year on the Best Places list and our return to the #1 position in the large employer category – and an honor that acknowledges the strong team and culture across AF Group.
While each of these accomplishments reflect well on our organization and teammates committed to serving you and your customers, these awards also reflect the success of our continued partnership with you, our valued agent partners. Together, our Workers’ Compensation with Care® philosophy keeps injured workers at the forefront.
Our sincerest thank you and best wishes to you this holiday season. We look forward to many more successful years to come.
The Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau (WCIRB) has published dual wage threshold changes for certain construction classifications, effective Jan. 1, 2020. View our construction class code guide for a list of the new thresholds and to see what we write. Download.
We rely on our agent partners to carry our services forward and are extremely grateful for their partnership. We recently sat down with Jon Siglar, chief operating officer of H&S Insurance Services, to hear why he values the CompWest philosophy. We are so grateful for his support — and thank him and all agent partners for being a champion of Workers’ Compensation with Care®. Watch the video.
The percentage of workers’ compensation claims that close within a year has continued to increase in California. Business Insurance recently reported on the topic, citing data that points to a downward trend in legacy claim activity. The article features observations from CompWest’s Dave McGowan, managing director of claims and disability. Read the article online.
Click here for a list of our top 10 written class codes during the past six months in both our Southern and Northern California regions.
Please contact your business development consultant with questions or to learn more.
California
AB-5 has passed and been signed by the governor. This legislation statutorily implements the Dynamex test for determining independent contractor status. The new law will apply to all policies, including those in-force July 1, 2020. Pursuant to Dynamex and AB 5, a worker is presumed to be an employee unless the party asserting that worker is a contractor can prove:
- The worker is free from control or direction from the hiring individual or company.
- The worker is providing a service that is outside the hiring entity’s normal scope of business.
- The worker is customarily engaged in an independently established trade.
An important issue associated with AB-5 involves the debate on whether the gig economy receives an exemption from the Dynamex test or a separate status. As a result, Uber, Lyft and Door Dash are using $90 million in funding to begin preparing for the prospects of November 2020 ballot initiative that would exempt gig economy workers from the Dynamex test and create a separate set of rules and benefits. This move will continue the debate through next June, the deadline to remove initiatives from the November ballot.
