Casey Craig

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Employer’s Guide to Handling Cumulative Trauma Claims

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Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

A growing thorn in employers’ sides has been the rise of worker’s compensation cumulative trauma (CT) claims. Cumulative trauma refers to the ongoing psychological and physical injuries that accumulate over time, often resulting from repetitive stress or exposure to adverse conditions. Employees missing time can lead to larger workers’ compensation claims, lower moral and less efficiency. It can be easy as an employer to take a defensive stance and fight every one of these but there are a few factors that need to be taken into consideration prior to deciding if you should settle or challenge these claims.

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Return to Work Programs: Best Practices for Handling Workers’ Comp Claims

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Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

How do you handle the situation when a great employee is injured but not quite ready to return to full duty? We do all that we can to prevent injuries and make sure once they do happen our employees are taken care of quickly and properly. The one true variable we have in our control, after a claim has been filed, is how to accommodate employees that are injured but not able to return to normal duties until deemed fully recovered.

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How to Strategically Grow Your Construction Company

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Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

One of the biggest ongoing challenges in the construction industry today is hiring and retaining quality employees that can help build on a company’s foundation. Growing a construction company in a sustainable way through internal promotions while also integrating new hires can separate one company from its competitors.

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The Billion-Dollar Cost of Working at Height: The Critical Questions to Ask Before Climbing a Ladder

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Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

Every year, OSHA publishes a “top 10 most frequently cited standards” list. Without question, ladders and fall protection consistently make the list. A Liberty Mutual 2023 workplace survey found that $6.26 billion was spent on falls as a result of working at height. Working at height is inherently dangerous but becomes more so when the incorrect ladders are used or improper setup for a job. Sending your employees to a jobsite without conducting a proper analysis to guarantee you have the proper equipment is setting yourself up to have preventable claims.

Steering Towards Safety: Strategies for Lowering Commercial Auto Insurance Premiums

Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

We are going into uncertain times as some commercial auto carriers are electing to no longer write new business in California. This is leading to other carriers, that are still willing, to be overwhelmed with requests for insurance quotes. Carriers are limited in the increases they can take from one policy period to the next and have had increasingly bad losses which has made it impossible to be profitable. This will lead to carriers inevitably charging more over time as the losses have become staggering. Let’s take a look at what you can do as an insured to help your company look like a better risk for these carriers and mitigate premium increases?

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Implementing Best Practices when Hiring in the Construction Industry

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Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

With unemployment rates settling near 4 percent, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find the right employees to help grow your construction company. With most able-bodied workers having secure employment, this leads to having either apprentice-type employees that come with unique challenges or pulling from an aging workforce that can bring cumulative injuries and risks. Navigating these issues can be complex and there is not a perfect solution, but employer’s hiring practices need to change in order to keep up with the current state of the industry.

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Properly Utilizing Tailgate Meetings

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Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

For many foremen and superintendents, weekly tailgate meetings can feel like a task that just needs to be checked off the list. However, while the purpose of these meetings is critical for the health and well-being of fellow field employees, the time required and repetitive nature of them can create challenges. To maximize the benefits of these meetings, construction firms must be proactive and thoughtful as they develop an inventory of topics.

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Construction Death Rate Not Decreasing as Expected

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Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

With the heightened safety regulations and OSHA guidelines over the past decade, many would think we are working in a much safer environment with fewer fatalities. Despite the rising number of employees and using a standard based off deaths per 100,000 employees, the data is showing that the number of fatalities are the same as they were a decade ago.

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The Link Between Your EMR and Primary Threshold

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Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

One of the biggest concerns for contractors is their Experience Modification Rating (EMR). If your EMR exceeds 1.00 or 1.25, contractors can be removed from bid lists and premiums can escalate quickly. Most decision makers have little idea what factors contribute to the EMR and just how claims can impact them.

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Staying Ahead of the “Hard Market”

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Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

Over the past 15+ quarters, California employers have been experiencing a soft workers’ compensation marketplace. At some point, however, this will start to pivot and the companies that will secure the more favorable pricing must be able to differentiate themselves to their insurance carriers. As we continue seeing signs of the hard market coming, without this solid explicit differentiation, it will become harder for our carriers to be aggressive with their pricing. With all of that said, as a business owner, you may be asking how you differentiate yourself to the insurance marketplace and protect your company from large premium increases. Following are some proven methods.

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How Higher Average Pay Can Lead to Work Comp Savings

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Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

Wage thresholds have increased consistently in the past decade. This has pushed owners to give sizable raises every few years to maximize employee compensation, but also reducing insurance cost. The experience modification (MOD) and payrolls are key factors in developing a company’s net rates for workers’ compensation, but average wage per hour represents a big differentiator for most carriers and can lead to even more savings.

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Wage Inflation’s Impact On Workers’ Compensation

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Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

Following up on a great article by fellow construction team member Kevin Howard, about anticipated wage threshold increases coming in 2022, I wanted to highlight the building problems resulting from substantial hourly wage increases.

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Pure Premium and How It Impacts Your Company

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Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

The Workers Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau (WCIRB) is an agency that compiles essential data annually which determines how your Experience MOD is impacted.. These factors establish the baseline average MOD of 1.00 for California companies that produce enough payroll and premium to qualify within the guidelines. These factors can change year to year and represent a key rate trend indicator for all policyholders.

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ANSI Releases New Mobile Elevating Work Platforms Standards

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Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

Last year, the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) updated their aerial lift standard, starting with renaming it Mobile Elevating Work Platforms (MEWP). This has been in the works since 2018 and is designed to align training, certifications, and equipment used on a more universal standard. According to the Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR), roughly 26 people die from MEWP each year. This prompted the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to increase training requirements to keep accidents to a minimum. Obviously, MEWP are essential for completing a wide variety of construction jobs. So, what should you, as a business owner, be doing to ensure your employees are safe and in compliance when OSHA comes by your jobsites?

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Implementing an Effective Fall Safety Program Can Have Serious Impacts

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Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

Year after year, falls are among the leading type of workers’ compensation claims and generate the highest claim costs. They account for multiple infractions on the top 10 most frequently cited standards, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. How can you, as a business owner, control your exposure and keep your employees productive and healthy?

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Profitable Bids Should Include Often Overlooked Insurance Costs

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Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

We will take a look at factors that go into your bid and ways to ensure you are hitting your target profit margin. There are many factors that go into creating a profitable bid on a construction project. They include…

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The Importance of Timely Workers’ Compensation Claims Reporting

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Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

Injuries, accidents, and mistakes happen. When a work-related injury occurs, a common reaction from many business owners is an instinct to NOT report the injury to their workers’ compensation carrier for fear of increasing their company’s Experience Modification (EMR). However, they couldn’t be more wrong. Timely reporting of all claims is the first step in controlling claim costs and lowering their EMR.

Nurse Triage Can Save You Time and Money

Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

When dealing with minor injuries, one of the last places you want your employees having to go right now is to a clinic or hospital emergency room. What are ways that you can keep your employees well cared for, without subjecting them to the added exposure of a waiting room? Telephonic Nurse Triage allows your employee to have a conversation with a registered nurse and possibly avoid the trip to a clinic or emergency room.

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Generating Your Employee Handbook Is Easier Than Keeping a New Years Resolution

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Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

When business owners are asked if their employee handbooks are up to date, they typically shrug and say “It’s something we have been meaning to tackle.” It is hard to blame them when it often feels as though a newly revised employee handbook quickly requires an update due to changes in employment laws! There is a significant need for an easy to use option where employers can have an up to date handbook throughout the year and, have it generated at no cost. Rancho Mesa provides that solution.

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Ensure You’re Not Under Covered and Overpaying for Auto Insurance

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Author, Casey Craig, Account Executive, Rancho Mesa Insurance Services, Inc.

Auto insurance prices are continuously rising. What is the reason for this and what can be done to cut back on the cost? There are many factors that lead to the carriers needing to increase their rates. We are going to discuss exactly what some of the reasons for the increases are; and more importantly, what business owners can do to offset price increase as much as possible while receiving adequate coverage.

Developing Solutions • Building Trust • Protecting Clients  –  ONE RELATIONSHIP AT A TIME.™