California Workers’ Comp Committee to Discuss Insurer Experience

The Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau of California’s Actuarial Committee is set to talk about insurer experience, and the impact of the economic slowdown on the pure premium.

The committee is set to meet virtually at 9:30 a..m on March 21. The meeting is open to the public.

California Wildfire Innovation Fund Getting $25M Boost

A California fund to encourage wildfire innovation and lower the severity and frequency of catastrophic wildfire is getting a $25 million boost.

Walnut Creek, Calif.-based CSAA Insurance Group made a $25 million commitment to the California Wildfire Innovation Fund, a climate-solutions strategy to help reduce the severity and frequency of catastrophic wildfires by supporting forest restoration-related economic development.

Tackling Threat of Mudslides in Rain Soaked California

Relentless storms from a series of atmospheric rivers have saturated the steep mountains and bald hillsides scarred from wildfires along much of California’s long coastline, causing hundreds of landslides this month.

So far the debris has mostly blocked roads and highways and has not harmed communities as in 2018 when mudslides roared through Montecito, killing 23 people and wiping out 130 homes.

Strong Storms Put California Levees to The Test

With multiple powerful storms continuing to bear down on California, state officials have warned that rural areas are the most at risk of flooding because the levees that protect them aren’t built to the same standards as others that shield more populated cities.

These rural levees – many of which are owned and maintained by private land owners – mostly protect farmland from flooding and pose minimal risk to most homes. But failures can cause major thoroughfares to flood, as happened on New Year’s Eve when a major highway in Sacramento County flooded and one person was killed.

At Least 20 Apartments Confirmed Damaged in Latest California Quake

At least 20 apartments were damaged by the latest earthquake to rattle the region of Northern California where a stronger quake nearly two weeks ago killed two people and knocked homes off their foundations, authorities confirmed this week.

The magnitude-5.4 aftershock struck at 10:35 a.m. on New Year’s Day about 9 miles southeast of Rio Dell in Humboldt County, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Kyle Knopp, Rio Dell’s city manager, said inspectors on Monday red-tagged 20 residences at a single apartment complex. Knopp said inspections were ongoing and officials expected to find additional homes rendered uninhabitable by the latest quake.

Thousands Still Without Power in Northern California Following M6.4 Quake

Thousands of customers are still without power following a large earthquake in Northern California.

A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck northern California on Tuesday, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Very strong shaking was reported from the quake, which struck in Ferndale roughly 200 miles north of San Francisco in the vicinity of the Mendocino triple junction where the Pacific, North America and Juan de Fuca plates meet, according to the USGS.

Report: California, Hawaii Had Among Nation’s Worst Ranked Roads

California’s expansive road system was among the nation’s worst ranked, according to a report from a research firm out on Tuesday. Hawaii’s roads were ranked as the nation’s worst.

ConsumerAffairs, a non-government research firm, used its own data combined with data from the U.S. Department of Transportation, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, and the Federal Highway Administration to rank the best and worst road conditions for travel by state.

M6.4 in Northern California Leaves Tens of Thousands Without Power

A magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck northern California on Tuesday, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The quake struck roughly 200 miles north of San Francisco in the vicinity of the Mendocino triple junction where the Pacific, North America and Juan de Fuca plates meet, according to the USGS.

Very strong shaking was reported, with some reports of shaking up to coastal Oregon.

Report: It Takes 7 Years to Close Most California Workers’ Comp Claims

It takes seven years to close the vast majority of workers’ compensation claims in California, more than double the time in the median state.

The Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau of California released a report detailing duration drivers for California workers’ compensation claims.

The report, Drivers of California Claim Duration, describes duration drivers for California workers’ comp claims, including how claim duration differs regionally across the state.

California Workers’ Comp Benefits to Increase in 2023

California’s State Average Weekly Wage rose by more than 5% in the year ending March 31, 2022, which will result in an increase in California workers’ compensation temporary total disability and permanent total disability rates for 2023 work injury claims and other workers’ compensation benefits that are tied to SAWW increases, the California Workers’ Compensation Institute is reporting.

The latest wage data from the U.S. Department of Labor examined by CWCI show that California’s SAWW increased by 5.159% from $1,570 in the first quarter of 2021 to $1,651 in the first quarter of 2022.

As a result, the TTD/PTD maximum rate, which stands at $1,539.71 per week for 2022 injuries following a record increase of more than 13.5% that took effect last January, will increase by an additional $79.44 to $1,619.15 per week for claims with injury dates on or after Jan. 1, 2023.

PARMA

External News