Timing is everything with reducing your Workers Comp claims and premiums. There are a few upcoming dates that are very important for Workers Comp polices in the regular market.

If your company has a January 1 renewal date, your Workers Comp reserves will soon tabulate on June 30th for your 2013 policy. If you have not started your Workers Comp reserve reduction program, the time is running very short.

Insurance carriers are not known for quickly reducing reserves on files. One of the main reasons is a larger file may have to navigate its way through the insurance hierarchy to have any changes to the reserves.

The Workers Comp claim formula is Total Incurred = Paid + Reserves. You can do little to change what has been paid. I have come across two companies that will actually review the medical bills post-payment. This may be an area that will gain in popularity over the next few months.

The reserve part of the formula is negotiable. If you renew on January 1, you should be in the last phase of reserve negotiation, not the very first. One area that you can help your carrier's Workers Comp adjusting staff is to not call them out of the blue requesting a claims review.

This can be a recipe for disaster as you may cause increases in files that you are actually trying to have reduced by the deadline date. Your company knows what is occurring with each employee much better than the adjusters. Updating them with timely information is important. You, as the employer, are basically their eyes and ears.

The updates will help your company establish a working relationship with your carrier's Workers Comp claims department. This will let them know about your company's:

• Medical treatment network
• Return to work program
• Timely first report of injury filing
• How your company treats injured employees

An insured's reputation is very important as the adjusting staff will know your reputation for handling your Workers Comp claims. This can save you a large amount of premium in the long run.

If you wish to have your reserves analyzed for your upcoming policy, you would need to likely bring in an expert ASAP. If your company does not renew January 1, please email (info@cutcompcosts.com) or call us, and we will provide you with the date that your reserves will apply to your next policy.

If your carrier wishes to have a claims review with you just before your renewal date, that is a grand waste of time if you are aiming to reduce your reserves for your next policy.