Nevada Insurance Commissioner Approves Workers’ Comp Rate Decrease

Acting Nevada Insurance Commissioner Amy L. Parks approved a filing from the National Council on Compensation Insurance for an average decrease of 5.5 percent for Nevada workers’ compensation voluntary insurance loss costs.

An average decrease of 4.2 percent for workers’ comp insurance assigned-risk rates was also approved. The filing will take effect on March 1. This decrease in loss costs is the largest since NCCI’s 2010 filing when loss costs decreased by an average of 7.6 percent, according to Parks’ office.

The majority of the decrease in loss costs is due to combined favorable changes in loss experience and favorable changes in loss development.

This suggests that the amount of reported workers’ comp claims will not grow over time by as large a proportion as previously anticipated. Both indemnity and medical loss components of workers’ comp, as analyzed by NCCI in its recently approved filing, showed improved experience and favorable loss development, according to Parks.

The reduction in assigned-risk rates takes into account the factors affecting the voluntary market, as well as information specific to the assigned-risk market.

In addition to the average decrease of 4.2 percent for the assigned-risk market, NCCI also reduced its assigned-risk expense constant from $240 to $160. This change would tend to benefit smaller risks in the assigned-risk market and is thus a change that is favorable to small-business development in Nevada.