Pinnacol Assurance will return $60 million to its customers in a dividend after claims came in lower than expected last year, the state’s largest provider of workers’ compensation insurance said Monday.
The dividend, the third in as many years, will be distributed to about 56,000 of the company’s 60,000 customers.
The amount of the dividend received varies based on the industry, the number of employees and the claim history of a company.
The average dividend should be around $1,100, with payouts ranging from a couple hundred dollars to $100,000 or more.
“We are quite happy to be in the position to return money to our customers,” said Ken Ross, president and chief executive of Pinnacol. “They deserve it based on their effort.”
Improved worker safety and lower claims are key reasons for the payout, he said.
Employers have used past dividends to buy safety equipment, hold safety-training courses, pay bonuses and host parties to reward workers for accident- free performance, Ross said.
“We spend much more money now on safety equipment and safety training than we ever have,” said Dave Morrill, president of Concrete Frame Associates in Aurora.
The commercial construction company runs 16 in-house training programs for its 270 employees. It has invested in equipment to protect workers from falls. And employees can earn bonuses if they complete a project efficiently and without injuries.
The investment in safety programs isn’t so much a function of the dividend as “sound business practice,” Morrill said. But having the extra money helps.
Pinnacol and its predecessors went 23 years without returning a dividend. Since 2005, the company has returned $172 million in dividends while cutting premiums.
Pinnacol has cut rates in four of the past five years. The rate reduction for 2007 premiums is 9 percent, the largest since 2003.
Legislation to allow injured workers to have greater say in their doctors shouldn’t hurt Pinnacol’s finances, Ross said.
Another bill to provide treatment for firefighters who get cancer could raise costs, Ross said.
Staff writer Aldo Svaldi can be reached at 303-954-1410 or asvaldi@denverpost.com.
