Travelers: Costliest Claims Driven by Most Common Workplace Accidents

Analysis of 1.2 million workers’ compensation claims reveals the costliest claims are driven by the most common workplace accidents, according to Travelers 2024 Injury Impact Report.

The data also shows first-year employees are still among those most vulnerable to injury.

The largest workers compensation insurer in the U.S. examined more than 1.2 million workers’ comp claims from 2017 to 2021.

The findings revealed that the most common workplace accidents make up the majority of claim costs. The report found that the most frequent causes of injury were:

• Overexertion (29% of claims analyzed)
• Slips, trips and falls (23%)
• Being struck by an object (12%)
• Motor vehicle accidents (5%)
• Caught-in or caught-between hazards (5%)

The top five drivers of severe claims ($250,000 or more), beginning with the costliest:

• Slips, trips and falls
• Overexertion
• Being struck by an object
• Motor vehicle accidents
• Caught-in or caught-between hazards

“Factors such as inexperience, workforce shortages and maintenance issues are all contributing to these unfortunate and often avoidable accidents,” said Rich Ives, senior vice president of Business Insurance Claim at Travelers. “While the number of injuries overall has been trending downward in recent years, our analysis shows that there’s never been a better time for businesses to invest in workplace safety and injury prevention.”

The 2024 report found that employees in their first year on the job continue to be the most vulnerable to workplace injuries, accounting for 35% of all workers compensation claims.

This year’s analysis also uncovered increases in missed workdays due to injuries.

On average, injured employees missed 72 workdays, up one day from last year’s report.

The construction industry continued to have the highest average number of lost workdays per injury (103 workdays, up from 99), followed by transportation (83 workdays, up from 77).

Injured small-business employees missed an average of 82 workdays, up from 79.

“There are tangible consequences to any injury, and many include long-term, sometimes permanent, effects,” said Chris Hayes, assistant vice president of Workers Compensation and Transportation, Risk Control, at Travelers. “By understanding where the risks were in the past, businesses can better identify what to look for and tailor their risk management and employee safety strategies accordingly to help prevent injuries from happening.”

Findings were based solely on indemnity claims, where the injured employees could not immediately return to work and incurred medical costs.