Upfront: When Time Is Money

Dragging your heels on reporting a workplace injury to your insurer is likely to result in increased claim costs, according to a new study by Hartford Financial Services. Claims filed a month or more after the injury cost an average of 48 percent more to settle than those reported in the first week. A delay of just eight days can raise claim costs by 10 percent.

The Hartford study analyzed more than 41,000 lost-time workers' compensation claims filed from 2000 to 2003. The ailments that prompted these claims fell into three categories: back injuries, carpal-tunnel syndrome and other nerve disorders, and miscellaneous injuries. Together, such injuries represent about two-thirds of all lost-time workers' comp claims. The study excluded claims for open wounds, fractures and dislocations because these incidents are almost always reported within 48 hours of occurrence.

For the claims included in the study, Hartford found that accidents reported on the day of the incident cost more, on average, than those reported later in the first week because these claims include the most serious injuries.

Large businesses that have a dedicated risk manager report injuries more quickly today than they used to. But smaller businesses tend to fall behind. They often deal with few worker injuries, so they don't have in place procedures for reporting accidents right away. And, suggests Glen-Robert Pitruzzello, assistant vice president, workers' compensation claim actuary, for The Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. in Hartford, Conn., some businesses take their time with injury reports because they fear their premiums will rise.