The Building Industry Association of Clark County (BIA) is giving back $3.6 million to local construction companies enrolled in the Return on Industrial Insurance (ROII*) program.
The BIA has 227 members enrolled in ROII, a L&I workers’ compensation rebate program (commonly referred to as a retro group). Last year, the BIA returned $3.2 million to members a month early to help member companies during the pandemic.
“BIA members – especially those in the ROII program – are committed to protecting their employees’ health and safety on jobsites. Because of this commitment to safety, qualifying members receive a portion back of what they pay into the state’s workers’ compensation fund,” said Dave Myllymaki, BIA’s president.
BIA’s Executive Director Avaly Scarpelli mentioned the impact the disbursements make to member companies: “This year’s disbursements were able to relieve some of the financial pressure our members have felt due to the pandemic. Many members have shared that they’re still recovering financially from the unexpected and rapid inflation of lumber and the Stay-at-Home order that halted work for a month last year. It’s tremendously satisfying to help our members recover so that they can focus on building homes for our community.”
Statewide, the ROII program is set to deliver another record-breaking amount of$30 million to members throughout the state. The ROII program is administered by the Building Industry Association of Washington (BIAW), which reported that participating Washington businesses earned a first adjustment refund of 39.5% for the 2019-20 plan year and a final adjustment for the 2017-18 plan year of 43.5%, which is the largest refund in program’s history. The percentage of return depends on many factors such as safety records, adherence to program policies and more.
*The ROII program is a group insurance program offered by the Building Industry Association of Washington (BIAW), incentivizing participating companies to focus on jobsite safety to protect their employees, reduce frequency of injuries, and the severity of costs associated with workers’ compensation claims. Participating companies receive refunds when the group’s premiums exceed their losses. ROII is one of the largest retrospective rating groups in Washington and has never experienced a loss in the program’s 40-year history. The program boasts the highest claim closure rate and the lowest average claim cost of all retro programs in the state.
