Workers' Compensation Claims During The Pandemic And Mitigating The Risk

While essential workers continue to make their way into the office amid the pandemic, many other Californians have been ordered to shelter in place. At first blush, non-essential businesses may view this as leading to a decrease in workers' compensation claims because they no longer have employees physically reporting to the office. There could be a decrease in claims for businesses that are closed or have reduced their workforce, which appears to be part of the reason for Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara's Order of April 13, 2020, requiring that some insurers refund premiums. However, essential businesses to which employees still report to work and non-essential businesses that require employees to work from home may not see a decrease and could experience an uptick in workers' compensation claims.