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SACRAMENTO – On Wednesday California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones adopted and issued a revised workers' compensation insurance advisory pure premium rate, lowering the benchmark to $1.74 per $100 of payroll for workers' compensation insurance, effective July 1, 2018.
Commissioner Jones has reduced the benchmark rate by 36.5 percent since January 2015, when the average pure premium rate was $2.74 per $100 of payroll.
With an average filed pure premium rate of $2.22 per $100 of payroll as of January 1, 2018, insurers are on average applying pure premium rates that are 27.6 percent more than the indicated pure premium rate approved by the commissioner Wednesday.
Even after considering the industry's extensive use of rating plan credits, industry profitability appears to be substantial as a percentage of premium.
"It is time insurers do the right thing and pass along more cost savings to California employers who deserve to share in the benefits cost reductions have brought to the workers' compensation system," said Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones. "In addition to the cost reductions that have led to higher profits, insurers are also benefiting from the federal income tax break, which should result on average in about another five percent decrease in premiums."
Commissioner Jones' order sets the advisory pure premium rate below the $1.80 average rate recommended by the Workers' Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau (WCIRB) in its filing.
Jones issued the advisory rate after a public hearing and careful review of the testimony and evidence submitted by stakeholders. The pure premium benchmark rate is only advisory, as the Legislature has not given the insurance commissioner authority over workers' compensation insurers' rates.
The WCIRB's pure premium advisory rate filing established that overall costs continue to decline in California's workers' compensation insurance system.
The pure premium advisory rate reduction is based on insurers' cost data through December 31,2017. Insurers' net costs in the workers' compensation system continue to decline as a result of SB 863, SB 1160, and AB 1244 enacted by the Legislature and Governor Brown. The WCIRB noted continued favorable medical loss development including acceleration in claim settlements.
Commissioner Jones has reduced the benchmark rate by 36.5 percent since January 2015, when the average pure premium rate was $2.74 per $100 of payroll.
With an average filed pure premium rate of $2.22 per $100 of payroll as of January 1, 2018, insurers are on average applying pure premium rates that are 27.6 percent more than the indicated pure premium rate approved by the commissioner Wednesday.
Even after considering the industry's extensive use of rating plan credits, industry profitability appears to be substantial as a percentage of premium.
"It is time insurers do the right thing and pass along more cost savings to California employers who deserve to share in the benefits cost reductions have brought to the workers' compensation system," said Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones. "In addition to the cost reductions that have led to higher profits, insurers are also benefiting from the federal income tax break, which should result on average in about another five percent decrease in premiums."
Commissioner Jones' order sets the advisory pure premium rate below the $1.80 average rate recommended by the Workers' Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau (WCIRB) in its filing.
Jones issued the advisory rate after a public hearing and careful review of the testimony and evidence submitted by stakeholders. The pure premium benchmark rate is only advisory, as the Legislature has not given the insurance commissioner authority over workers' compensation insurers' rates.
The WCIRB's pure premium advisory rate filing established that overall costs continue to decline in California's workers' compensation insurance system.
The pure premium advisory rate reduction is based on insurers' cost data through December 31,2017. Insurers' net costs in the workers' compensation system continue to decline as a result of SB 863, SB 1160, and AB 1244 enacted by the Legislature and Governor Brown. The WCIRB noted continued favorable medical loss development including acceleration in claim settlements.
- Details
- Written by: California Department of Insurance
WALNUT CREEK, Calif. – Following high-profile crashes involving autonomous vehicle technologies, a new report from AAA shows that consumers’ perception of the technology has slipped.
Today, almost three-quarters (73 percent) of American drivers report they would be too afraid to ride in a fully self-driving vehicle.
When AAA asked the same question in a survey released in January, 63 percent of drivers said they were afraid.
“Despite their potential to make our roads safer in the long run, consumers have high expectations for safety,” said Greg Brannon, AAA’s director of Automotive Engineering and Industry Relations. “Our results show that any incident involving an autonomous vehicle is likely to shake consumer trust, which is a critical component to the widespread acceptance of autonomous vehicles.”
Surprisingly, AAA’s latest survey found that Millennials – the group that has been the quickest to embrace automated vehicle technologies – were the most impacted by these incidents.
The percentage of Millennial drivers too afraid to ride in a fully self-driving vehicle has jumped from 49 percent to 64 percent since late 2017, representing the largest increase of any generation surveyed.
AAA believes self-driving cars have the potential to revolutionize transportation safety around the world, where a million people are killed every year in traffic collisions.
But the technology must be implemented safely in order to keep the public’s trust, according to John Moreno, who manages Public Affairs for AAA Northern California and six other Western states, including Nevada, where AAA launched the nation’s first self-driving vehicle open to the public in Downtown Las Vegas last year.
AAA is surveying riders to gauge how their perceptions of the technology change after a firsthand demonstration.
As of May, over 23,000 people have taken a ride on the free shuttle. Early results from the yearlong pilot show a 30 percent increase in positive sentiment toward self-driving cars after riding on the shuttle, Moreno said.
“Consumer education is a key part of this effort, because people sometimes fear what they don’t understand. It’s always better to show rather than tell,” Moreno said. “When we demonstrate this shuttle to the public, we’re explaining how this technology works and how it benefits them. Taking that first ride makes all the difference in how people feel about the future potential of self-driving cars.”
When AAA first polled consumers about the self-driving technology in 2016 and later in 2017, a full 75 percent of Americans reported feeling afraid to ride in a fully automated vehicle. That percentage rose to 78 percent in early 2017, but fell to 63 percent in early 2018, with many pointing to a rising public trust in the technology.
In addition to the Las Vegas shuttle, AAA Northern California has several other partnerships and projects to learn more about self-driving technology: GoMentum Station in Concord, Calif., the state’s largest test site for self-driving cars, and Torc Robotics, a Virginia-based autonomous technology company.
Today, almost three-quarters (73 percent) of American drivers report they would be too afraid to ride in a fully self-driving vehicle.
When AAA asked the same question in a survey released in January, 63 percent of drivers said they were afraid.
“Despite their potential to make our roads safer in the long run, consumers have high expectations for safety,” said Greg Brannon, AAA’s director of Automotive Engineering and Industry Relations. “Our results show that any incident involving an autonomous vehicle is likely to shake consumer trust, which is a critical component to the widespread acceptance of autonomous vehicles.”
Surprisingly, AAA’s latest survey found that Millennials – the group that has been the quickest to embrace automated vehicle technologies – were the most impacted by these incidents.
The percentage of Millennial drivers too afraid to ride in a fully self-driving vehicle has jumped from 49 percent to 64 percent since late 2017, representing the largest increase of any generation surveyed.
AAA believes self-driving cars have the potential to revolutionize transportation safety around the world, where a million people are killed every year in traffic collisions.
But the technology must be implemented safely in order to keep the public’s trust, according to John Moreno, who manages Public Affairs for AAA Northern California and six other Western states, including Nevada, where AAA launched the nation’s first self-driving vehicle open to the public in Downtown Las Vegas last year.
AAA is surveying riders to gauge how their perceptions of the technology change after a firsthand demonstration.
As of May, over 23,000 people have taken a ride on the free shuttle. Early results from the yearlong pilot show a 30 percent increase in positive sentiment toward self-driving cars after riding on the shuttle, Moreno said.
“Consumer education is a key part of this effort, because people sometimes fear what they don’t understand. It’s always better to show rather than tell,” Moreno said. “When we demonstrate this shuttle to the public, we’re explaining how this technology works and how it benefits them. Taking that first ride makes all the difference in how people feel about the future potential of self-driving cars.”
When AAA first polled consumers about the self-driving technology in 2016 and later in 2017, a full 75 percent of Americans reported feeling afraid to ride in a fully automated vehicle. That percentage rose to 78 percent in early 2017, but fell to 63 percent in early 2018, with many pointing to a rising public trust in the technology.
In addition to the Las Vegas shuttle, AAA Northern California has several other partnerships and projects to learn more about self-driving technology: GoMentum Station in Concord, Calif., the state’s largest test site for self-driving cars, and Torc Robotics, a Virginia-based autonomous technology company.
- Details
- Written by: AAA
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