b'Roofing,ers Compensation Insurance and Profits:the Puzzle Pieces Fit Contractors Work Making l}ontinuedpage 7 from companies seem to write the coverage "blind" - they really don\'t know hisInsurance agents can help roofing contractors increase their profits by business. The agent and the carrier seldom visit. He believes costs couldbeing partners with them. Effective strategies include: improve if mutual respect existed between the parties.Reducingtheworkers\'compexpensebybeginningwiththehiring You have one insurance number that combines al I of your experience inprocess. the area of claims, claims management, safety, the annual premium audit, Assisting theinementing effective safety programs that contractorsimplreturn classification codes that either rewards you for good behavior or penalizesare measured by aon investment and lower insurance premiums. you for poor performance:The Experience Modifier. Profits for the roofingH totten strategies to analyze and correct Experience elpingdevelop wricontractor can be directly tied to the Ex-Mod. When the Ex-Mod is high, theModifier Worksheets to lower the modifiers. contractor will pay more for insurance premiumsWhen,.,,,., ,The goal of the workers\' comp program is to keep the . .,,,,,,.,._the Ex-Mod is low,contractor will have the opportu- costs as low as possible, enabling the r ingr to theoof contractonity to win bid jobs againstwho do not~ be more profitable. One thing contractors can do to actheir competitorshieve low have aEx-Mod. In fact, Gary Boyd, Owner of Boyd,lower workers\' comp costs is to hire an expert who has the Inc in Fort Worth, Texas, believes the ability to have a_:.,J specialized knowledge, experience and resources toa _,, ""\'":- make low experience modifier is aas more risk man- _,._.long-term impactthe expense of workers\' compensation muston agers are requiring it to qualify to bid on jobs__.,,,,.insurance. The end result is happier employees who do not One thing all roofing contractors agree on is that thewant to file claims and roofing contractors with more p -rofcost of workers\' compensation insurance is high. Theyits. consider it to be aof labor and look to reduce it inThis article originally published in the March 21, 2005 cost suranceith anyway possible. The contractors contacted for this arti- . liiiilissue of the In Journal, reprinted w permission cle also agreed that their agents historically have pro- from the author Cary Duke is aWorkers Comp Certified vided little in the way of w en, strategic processes to assist them withAdvisor w the Duke Agency, Inc. located in Flower Mound,TX He may ritt ith lowering the cost of the insurance. Contractors want underwriters to knowbe reached at Cary@TheCompExpert.com. more about their company and want more than cursory safety reviews. ITERPR 1ZYEABI 9'