2014 Workers’ Comp Rates Ranked by State

The median index rate for workers’ compensation insurance fell to an all-time low in 2014 to $1.85 per $100 of payroll.

Index rates in 2014 varied from a low of $0.88 in North Dakota to a high of $3.48 in California, according to the 2014 Oregon Workers’ Compensation Premium Rate Ranking report.

The study, which the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services conducts every two years, looks at workers’ compensation rates for a mix of industries in all 50 states plus the District of Columbia.

For 2014 rates, California, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Alaska and Oklahoma ranked the highest, while North Dakota, Indiana, Arkansas, Virginia, Massachusetts and Nevada were the lowest and well under the median.

The report includes data showing premium level changes by state from 2010 to 2014. About three-fifths of the states that report premium level changes to the National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI) had a net rate decrease over the five-year period from Jan. 1, 2010, to approximately May 2014. Montana (-39.1 percent), Kentucky (-30.65 percent) and West Virginia (-25.4 percent) had the biggest drops, while Delaware (52.3 percent), New York (24.2 percent) and Connecticut (21.4 percent) saw the biggest increases for the period.

The report also compares maximum, median and minimum rates for 2016 through 2014; ranks 2014 premiums by class and other data.

The study can be found online.