Do you own a business with employees in Nevada? You’ll want to get the best workers’ compensation insurance. Workers’ comp insurance is designed to protect both yourself as the business owner and your employees if an accident occurs.
Nevada Workers Compensation Insurance: An Overview
If you have 1 or more employees, you’re required by law to carry the proper workers’ comp insurance. Here is an overview of some of the statistics for workers’ compensation insurance in Nevada.
Number of fatal injuries annually: 5,190
Employers’ cost per $100 of covered payroll: $0.95
National ranking (1 = largest % increase from 2012-2016): -0.03%
Low rate per $100 in payroll: $0.21
High rate per $100 in payroll: $11.55
How Does Nevada Workers’ Compensation Law Work?
Workers’ compensation works like many other types of insurance. You will pay a premium to keep your coverage active in exchange workers’ compensation insurance. All private employers with 1 or more employees in Nevada are required to purchase and keep a workers’ compensation insurance policy active. Workers’ compensation insurance carries benefits for both employer and employee:
As the employer, it protects you against liability risk if one of your employees suffers from a workplace injury.
As an employee, workers’ compensation helps you financially if a workplace injury occurs.
It is a no-fault insurance product, meaning that you and your employee can use the benefits no matter who is at fault for the injury. As long as the claim is valid, your employee will be able to receive workers’ compensation benefits. Meanwhile, you will be protected from any additional damages claimed by your employee. Without proper workers’ compensation insurance coverage, you would be at risk if your employee suffered a work-related injury. This might include lawsuits and fines and paying out-of-pocket for your employee’s medical treatment.
An injury could occur while your employee is on the job so there are forms that need to be filled out to start your claim process. You will need to fill out:
Employer’s Report of Industrial Injury or Occupational Disease: This report is your opportunity to provide your own statement of the on-the-job injury sustained by your employee. It will also establish wage history for benefit purposes. Be sure to report your employee’s date of hire and wage history accurately. You will need to complete and file this form with your workers’ comp insurance provider within 6 working days of receiving the report of initial treatment from your employee’s doctor.
Employer’s Wage Verification Form: This is an additional form that will provide important information about the employee’s wages. This information will help determine the compensation that the employee may be entitled to. If the employee will be out of work for 5 days in a 20-day period, you will need to complete and file with your insurance provider within 6 working days after you receive the report of initial treatment. You will also need to provide the form within that same time frame if the employee will be off for 5 consecutive days. Otherwise, you will provide this form when your insurance company requests it. There are also forms that are filled out by the employee.
Employee’s Claim for Compensation/Report of Initial Treatment: Your employee will fill this form out with the doctor who treats him or her for an injury. It must be completed and filed with you and your insurance company within 3 working days of the employee’s treatment. If the form is not filed within this time period, the doctor who treated your employee may receive a fine of up to $1,000.
Notice of Injury or Occupational Disease — Incident Report: Your employee will fill out this form detailing the incident that occurred. It must be completed within 7 days after they are injured. Once the form is filled out, it should be given to you, the employer. You must hold onto the form for 3 years.
Workers’ compensation is a no-fault system but you may be able to claim certain defenses in some cases.
Drug and alcohol use: If the employee is under the influence when he or she is injured, this will cause a problem for his or her claim. If these substances are present, the claim can be denied because the insurance company will presume that the substance was the direct cause of the injury.
Fraud: If your employee intentionally misrepresents the incident to receive workers’ compensation benefits, the claim will be denied. If the fraud is proven, the employee may also face prosecution by the Attorney General’s office.
Intentional injury: If your employee intentionally attempts to injure himself or someone else, the claim for this injury may be denied.
Untimely filing: Your employee has 7 days to provide notice of an injury and 90 days to file a claim for compensation. In some cases, if these deadlines are not met it may prevent their claim from being processed.
To reduce workplace injuries from occurring, there are a couple of things you can do:
Hold regular safety trainings. Each workplace comes with its own risks. Be sure to take the time to train any new employees on all of the proper equipment and procedures. It is also useful to hold regular safety trainings to update employees on new protocols.
Maintain a healthy relationship. It’s important to make sure your employees know that they can speak with you if there is a problem. They may notice that a fellow employee is using equipment improperly or if they think there is another safety issue. Your employees should also be aware of the workers’ compensation claim process.
You can use a formula to determine the premium for your workers’ comp insurance. The examples below were calculated using 5 employees and an experience mod of 0. Your experience mod compares your workers’ compensation plans with other employers of a similar size and business type.
Workers’ comp formula: Class code rate X Experience Mod. X (Payroll/$100) + State Taxes & Fees = Premium
Class code
Class code description
Rate
Annual pay
State fee
Annual employer premium
5537
HVAC – heating and cooling service/ repair
$4.55 – $7.36
$48,691
$250
$12,327.20 - $19,825.60
8380
Auto service and repair – mechanic
$2.05 – $3.31
$40,875
$250
$5,439.70 - $8,014.80
8831
Animal shelters and kennels – veterinarian
$0.99 – $1.60
$98,495
$250
$6,125.50 - $9,129.60
9012
Property management– leasing agent
$1.07 – $1.73
$31,737
$250
$2,947.95 - $3,995.25
9083
Fast food restaurant – concessions – doughnut Shop
$0.71 – $1.15
$22,805
$250
$2,059.60 - $2,561.30
*This table assumes the employer has 5 employees with an experience modifier of 1 and a state fee of $250*
4 Types of Workers Comp Benefits
Your employee is eligible for several types of benefits:
Wage replacement benefits: Your employee is eligible for wage replacement benefits if he or she is unable to work or if he or she works a lower-paid job. If he or she can’t work at all, your employee will be paid 66.66% of his or her wage biweekly until he or she returns to work. He or she will be eligible to receive 66.66% of the difference between the 2 wages.
Permanent partial disability benefits: If your employee has a permanent impairment due to a work-related injury, he or she will be eligible for permanent partial disability. It’s based on the employee’s age, wage and percentage of disability. It will usually be paid to the employee in a lump sum settlement.
Vocational rehabilitation benefits: Vocational rehabilitation maintenance benefits allow your employee to receive 66.66% of his or her wage biweekly while they receive training for a different occupation.
Medical benefits: Injured employees are eligible to have all of the medical costs related to their injury by your workers’ comp insurance provider.
Best Workers Compensation Insurance in Nevada
Before you select your workers’ compensation insurance provider, you’ll want to evaluate each provider for what it can offer your business. Here are a few great providers to consider.
1. Zurich: Best for Small Construction Businesses
Zurich offers robust coverage for construction businesses. It offers the option to include coverage for extra needs, such as foreign coverage for employees assigned outside of the United States.
It also offers coverage for work on military and embassy bases. Zurich’s customer service team is committed to providing customized programs that fit the unique risk and coverage needs of each business.
2. Simply Business: Best for Tailored Coverage
Best For:
Tailored coverage
VIEW PROS & CONS:
securely through Simply Business Insurance's website
Simply Business offers a comprehensive suite of business insurance that specializes in making it easy to insure your business.
Whether you’re looking for construction workers' insurance or insurance for your startup, Simply Business helps you find the right coverage at the right price.
Tell Simply Business a little bit about your business and you'll get almost-instantaneous affordable quotes from top insurance providers. You can look into workers’ comp insurance that will cover everyone on your team, and you can get covered in accordance with Nevada law without overspending.
Building your business is hard enough. Let Simply Business make it easier. Get a quote from Simply Business today.
securely through The Hartford Workers Comp's website
One of the most important things about your insurance provider is its ability to handle claims efficiently. The Hartford is known for its claims satisfaction — you’ll feel secure that if a claim does arise, your insurance provider will have your back.
It offers customized billing solutions and discounts to help you maintain a budget for your business. You’ll be able to receive an online customized quote in just a few minutes.
4. AIG: Best for Casualty Risk Consulting
AIG is committed to helping you avoid accidents in the first place.
Casualty risk consultants can work with you to assess the risks within your business and industry.
These consultants can then help you identify areas for risk improvement and develop action plans. These tools can help keep your employees safe and save money for your business in the long run.
Travelers offers a number of benefits. It offers local claim professionals to provide more personalized service to your business. Travelers even offers an investigative team for claims to be sure that every claim is valid. To reduce workplace accidents in the first place, Travelers also offers safety resources to help keep your employees safe.
How Do I Get Workers’ Compensation Insurance?
First, investigate and compare the insurance providers in your area. Don’t be afraid to ask other businesses about their experiences with their insurance provider. You can also look online for workers’ compensation insurance quotes for your business.
Once you’ve found the best provider for your business needs, sign up online or through an agent. You can then rest with the peace of mind that if one of your employees has a work-related accident, you’ll both be covered.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q
1) Q: How long can an employee stay on workers’ compensation?
A
The length of time that an employee can remain on workers’ compensation is set by the state. Usually, the range is from 3 to 7 years. In addition to that, there is generally not a limit for permanent disability benefits unless you live in a state that terminates the benefits at age 65. For employers seeking the cheapest workers’ compensation insurance, check out these top providers.
Q
2) Q: Who pays for workers’ compensation benefits?
A
The employer is responsible for purchasing workers’ compensation insurance to cover the benefits of employees. The must pay a monthly premium based on class code and payroll. To get a custom workers’ compensation quote, click here.
Q
3) Q: Do I have to get workers’ compensation insurance?
A
This depends on which state you have employees. The following states require workers; compensation under specific requirements: AK, CA, CO, CT, DE, HI, IL, IA, KS, KY, MD, MA, MI, MN, MS, NH, NJ, NY, NC, OH, OK, SC, SD, UT, WA. To get the best workers’ compensation premium, enter your zip code here.
Methodology
Benzinga crafted a specific methodology to rank workers comp insurance. We prioritized carriers based on coverage options, specialized industries, customer service experience and how quickly and easily you're able to get insured including online tool usage. We also included workers comp insurance quote aggregators in lists to make it easy and efficient to compare policy quotes and options. To see a comprehensive breakdown of our methodology, please visit see our Workers' Compensation Insurance Methodology page.
Most Dangerous Industries Per State
The construction industry reports the most injuries and workers' compensation claims in 38 out of 50 states.
Second place goes to the forestry industry, followed by the transportation industry. By law, businesses with more than 1 employee must carry workers' compensation insurance. Workers' compensation insurance protects both your business and employees and creates a safety net for wage replacements and medical benefits.
Use our calculator to determine how much workers' compensation will cost you and your business.
Ashley Hart is a personal finance writer passionate about helping people feel empowered to take control of their finances. She has more than eight years of writing experience, focused on insurance.
