Archives 2011

If you are shopping for workers’ comp insurance in the medium to large policy market, it’s a sure bet that you have heard the word “captive” at least once or twice.

In this article there are two types of workers’ comp “captives” that will be discussed.

The first is a group captive. There are many varieties of this flavor. This is a situation where a number of companies pool their resources and set up a small insurance company to insure some part of their risk. They can be shared or segregated. There must be some degree of risk sharing to meet legal requirements.

Some of these are often called a “rent-a-captive.” In some cases this captive is used to reduce the costs associated with a high deductible master policy. For example, if your company has a million dollar per claim deductible (a typical high deductible), you could use a “Buy Back Deductible Captive Policy” to assist with reducing the negative effect of high reserves.

For more information on one type of “buy-back-deductible-captive” – please take a look at Kris Delano’s article. Kris works with us on these type of captives.

Another breed is called a segregated portfolio fund. This is usually held “captive” by a carrier and the risk sharing comes between the captive owners and the carrier.

Both captive plans are designed to help entities with large premium recover some of the premium, based on a good loss ratio. They are also designed to recover some of the losses from the insured (in favor of the carrier of course.) In this way they resemble retroactive plans, also known as “retros.”

In all cases, the shared risk encourages both parties to concentrate more on safety and reduced accidents for a single motive: profit.

Both plans offer some tax advantages due to the increase in tax deductible premium paid up front. If there is underwriting profit, there are options as to when to declare the profit that allow the captive owners to be more selective as to how much tax they will have to pay every year.

Also, since the reserves set for claims will be stored in the captive, and NOT in the carrier’s bank account (reserves are not tax deductible), there is another tax advantage here.

If all this is confusing, please consider consulting with a captive expert before proceeding in to one of these agreements. There are many options to consider, and many steps that require negotiation.

At PEO Pros we do not offer “retail captives.” All of our captive arrangements are negotiated individually, tailored to fit the needs of the client. It is very likely that captive clients will save money by having us negotiate the captive agreement for them.

Please use the form below if you would like more information on a captive situation.

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When is a worker an employee and when is a worker an independent contractor?

Employers worry that they may have an independent contractor that is actually an employee. Please remember this important fact: There is no such thing as a 1099 employee.

The worker is either an employee, requiring tax withholding and an issued W-2, or they are an independent contractor.

Things change from state to state. We are asked this question quite often by our payroll consulting clients, not only here in Orlando, but throughout the state of Florida and even nationwide.

Here is a list of questions the state of Florida uses to determine the status of a worker:

A “Yes” answer for the following questions indicates that the worker is an employee:
1. Does the business provide instructions to the worker about when, where and how he or she is to perform the work?
2. Does the business provide training to the worker?
3. Are the services provided by the worker integrated into the business’ operations?
4. Must the services be rendered personally by the worker?
5. Does the business hire, supervise and pay assistants to the worker?
6. Is there a continuing relationship between the business and the worker?
7. Does the business set the work hours and schedule?
8. Does the worker devote substantially full time to the work of the business?
9. Is the work performed on the business’ premises?
10. Is the worker required to perform the services in an order or sequence set by the business?
11. Is the worker required to submit oral or written reports to the business?
12. Is the worker paid by the hour, week or month?
13. Does the business have the right to discharge the worker at will?
14. Can the worker terminate his or her relationship with the business any time he or she wishes without incurring liability to the business?
15. Does the business pay the traveling expenses of the worker?

A “Yes” answer for the following questions indicates that the worker is an Independent Contractor:
16. Does the worker furnish significant tools, materials and equipment?
17. Does the worker have a significant investment in the facilities?
18. Can the worker realize a profit or loss as a result of his or her services?
19. Does the worker provide services for more than one firm at a time?
20. Does the worker make his or her services available to the general public?

Confusing? Yes. Is it risky? Yes it is. The federal government and the IRS are under a directive to reduce the abuse of the 1099 classification. Make sure your contractors are truly independent contractors. If you are unsure, you may want to check with an expert.

If you would like further information from us please call 800.788.8343 or use the form below:

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Many times a day, we are asked if there is a way to get a discount on workers’ comp premium. In Orlando, other parts of Florida, and indeed nationwide, this is a daily part of our workers’ comp quotes process. There are both short and long answers to this.

Short Answer: “Yes, sort of …”

Long Answer
Every state in the country handles workers’ comp their own way, and not surprisingly, no two states are alike. however, at the risk of generalization, we will put states in two categories: Administrative States and Loss-Cost States. Each is discussed below.

Administrative Rates
Many states set the rates for workers’ comp, or at least the “base rate”. Florida, for example, defines the manual rate for each workers’ comp classification code, with help from the National Council for Compensation Insurance (NCCI). These rates can be modified by various factors, including credits for a drug free workplace, a written safety program, a very complicated and confusing program for construction credits, and for all companies the actual claims experience can be taken in to effect.

Loss Cost Factors (LCF) or Loss Cost Modifier (LCM)
Other states may have a base rate table which is multiplied by the insurance carriers LCM, as determined by historical claims data. In addition, some states let the carriers set their own rates for each class code, which is then put through an extensive approval process.

Stay with us, we told you this is the Long Answer …

So how does this help a business owner get discount rates? There are two options we will discuss today, traditional policies and co-employment solutions using a PEO.

In a state like Florida, the traditional policy rates can only be affected by credits and experience modifiers. Credits are offered for a verified, written safety program (2% discount) and a certified Drug Free Workplace program (5% discount). There are also some very confusing credits for new construction, which have not been a major factor in the last few years, sadly. A company that has been paying comp premium for more than 2 years may also be eligible for an Experience Modifier Adjustment. Every new company starts with a multiplier of 1.0, that is, no modification at all. Have a couple of good years with no claims, that multiplier can be less than 1.0, say .92 or .83 for example. Have a couple of bad years with a lot of claims and that multiplier can go up. There are also programs which can refund premium or pay dividends to policy holders, but these are usually restricted to annual premiums of $50,000 or more.

Using a PEO in a Co-Employment Situation is a completely different scenario. In this case, the PEO becomes the employer of record (for comp purposes among others) and pays whatever rate they pay for their employees. Since the client’s employees are now the PEO’s employees, the client no longer pays comp premium, but instead pays a service charge to the PEO. This number is unregulated and negotiable. It is possible for a safe client to negotiate a much lower rate on workers’ comp. Conversely, a client who can’t get coverage from a traditional carrier (because their risk is actually much higher than the state set rate would bear), can get coverage from a PEO by negotiating an equitable service charge.

So while paying a PEO is technically not paying for workers’ comp insurance (it’s their insurance, not yours), you can get your employees covered at a discount rate.

If you have more questions on this topic please use the contact form below:

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Mike and Starr Mackey

“The first time I even thought about W-2s this year was when our personal copies arrived in the mail” Destinations Unlimited Tours owner Mike Mackey tells us. “It’s a tremendous relief not to worry about that and other HR issues like payroll taxes and workers’ comp insurance. I’m so glad PEO Pros found us a good match for our PEO services.”

Mike and Starr Mackey, pictured here, are the owners of this combination travel agency and charter bus company.

“We like to work with tour groups. Schools, churches and other common interest groups can have us take them to the cruise ship, the big game, or even a safe tour of New York City. We take them to the best restaurants, best hotels, and all of the details are taken care of.”

“The PEO relationship has enabled us to provide proper insurance coverage to work with public schools, department of defense and other heavily regulated agencies. Workers’ Comp was always a black cloud that hung over our head before. Now it is somebody else’s problem.”

“We even have a ‘Magical Mystery Tour’ where the guests are only told how much money to bring, and when they will be back. I’m not going to spoil it by telling you where we are going this time, but we have gone to places like Mobile, AL and toured the Navy Museum, stopped in Panama City Beach for some sun and white sand, and even hit some breweries and wineries along the way. It’s one of our most popular tour packages.”

“Folks enjoy taking us to the cruise ship, because the vacation begins when they step on the bus, and doesn’t end until they get back home. No driving to Miami or Fort Lauderdale. No parking worries. No traffic. Leave the worries to us!”

Destinations Unlimited Tours has been a client of ours since 2008. They have recommended our service to some of their friends in the industry, the best testimonial a client can give!

“We recently had a worker who was out on sick leave” Starr Mackey tells us. “It was so nice to simply make a call to the PEO and find out what we needed to do. They are always only a call or email away.”

Debby Boote

“On a personal level, I like it because we have direct deposit and my money goes right to my bank account” says Debby Boote in Business Development. “And on a business level, I like it because if there is ever a problem or a question I can go to the PEO and they are always there to help out right away.”

Here is a video featuring Mike Mackey, Starr Mackey and Debby Boote from Destinations Unlimited Tours:

PEO Pros / PAY-surance HR has been selected for a local award.

January 7, 2011. MAITLAND, FL
An Orlando survey company, ST Marketing out of Maitland, has notified PAY-surance HR that they are the recipients for “Best Payroll Consultants in Central Florida.”

“PEO Pros / PAY-surance HR was chosen from a field of 23 Payroll Consultants in Central Florida as they excelled in all categories” a spokesperson for ST Marketing tells us. “They were chosen ahead of local branches of ADP, Paychex and Compupay, three national firms considered to be front runners in this competition.”

They shared with us some of the award research process:

“We had seven core values to examine, and we did this by contacting existing clients and ex-clients. It was particularly important that the ex-clients spoke about the seven core values. While we will list all of the values in our upcoming news release, you can be sure that professionalism, flexibility, pricing and on-time performance were considered.”

Award Ceremony has not been scheduled but it is most likely going to be in March 2011.

For more information please use the contact form below:

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“I hear people talking about their SUTA, what is it?”

“The state just raised my SUTA rate! What can I do?”

“What can I do about SUTA?”

“My Accountant just told me I should consider a PEO because of my SUTA rate increase.”

Have you wondered what this acronym stands for?

• SUTA = State Unemployment Tax Act. Similarly,
• FUTA = Federal Unemployment Tax Act.

It is a tax assessed on employers to fund unemployment benefits. It is often (wrongly) called “Unemployment Insurance” or “SUI.”

The term SUTA is often used to refer to the employer’s SUTA rate, that is, the percent of payroll that is assessed on that particular employer.

Most states start new businesses at an arbitrary base rate, and they stay at that rate until a significant amount of employment history is acquired.

In Florida, for example, a new business is assigned a SUTA rate of 2.7% of payroll for the first 30 to 33 months. After this, the rate may fluctuate up or down based on employer experience. The current maximum in Florida is 5.4%

In contrast, the FUTA rate is a constant 0.8% and does not change per employer.

Both rates have a maximum wage applicability. In Florida, the SUTA rate is only applied to the first $7,000 of each employee’s wages with that employer. (FUTA also only applies to the first $7,000.)

Why is this Important When Considering a PEO?

When an employer turns his employees over to a PEO (formerly known as an Employee Leasing Company) they now fall under the SUTA rate of the PEO.

Obviously, in some cases, this can be beneficial to an employer who has had an unusually bad experience with unemployment. It can also be of great assistance to have a Professional Employer Organization to direct the employee hiring and terminations in a way that limits exposure to unemployment claims.

In any case, transferring the responsibility of the Unemployment Claims from the client company to the PEO makes unemployment claims “somebody else’s problem.”