Civil Penalties for Proof-of-Coverage Filings and Mid-Term Cancellations

Salem, OR (WorkersCompensation.com) - The Workers' Compensation Division (WCD) will be reinstating the assessment of quarterly civil penalties to insurers in 2013 for late proof-of-coverage filings and late notices to the director of mid-term cancellation. Penalties previously assessed for insurers' filings were temporarily suspended in 2009 when Oregon converted to the current policy-based proof-of-coverage system.

Oregon law requires insurers to file proof of workers' compensation coverage, on behalf of insured employers, with the Department of Consumer and Business Services (DCBS). WCD monitors proof-of-coverage filings and investigates employers when their policies expire or are canceled mid-term to ensure necessary coverage exists to protect both employers and their workers for work-related injuries. These activities require that insurers provide WCD timely coverage filings and mid-term cancellations at a satisfactory level of performance.

WCD will resume the assessment of civil penalties for untimely filing performance for activity in the first quarter of 2013 and each quarter thereafter. Penalties will be assessed for both untimely proof-of-coverage filings and late notices of mid-term cancellation. Before resuming penalties, the division will provide insurers with data about their delinquent filings for the second and third quarters of 2012. WCD will also provide insurers with late-filed proof of coverage and mid-term cancellation data along with dollar amounts of civil penalties that would have been assessed for these sample results. This information will allow insurers to make necessary adjustments to their filing processes and to contact the division with questions before penalties are actually assessed for first quarter 2013 performance. Insurers will receive the second quarter data this month and the third quarter data by early November 2012.

Separately, WCD will continue to address “pending coverage” cases where there is evidence of coverage and insurers have not made the required filings or responded to our inquiries. Those “pending coverage” inquiries and assessed penalties will continue.

The following information summarizes what must be filed with WCD and information about the civil penalties that will be assessed:
Coverage filings must be filed electronically with the director of DCBS for each new or renewed issued policy within 30 days after coverage of the employer is effective (ORS 656.419(2)).

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