News and Updates
Category: 2018 Group Retro
Letters Regarding 2018 Group Retro Refunds
You may have received, or will soon receive a letter from Ohio BWC stating that they are “unable to approve your request” to issue premium refunds based on 2018 Group Retrospective Rating. To recap, BWC chose to withhold 2018 Group Retro refunds from Ohio employers in light of the large dividend that was released to employers in 2020. Spooner appealed that decision on behalf of our clients with the intent of getting those Group Retro refunds paid out to participating employers, like your business. Spooner has maintained our stance and our fight over the last three years as the hearings and appeals process has continued to play out. Why did we receive this letter? These letters are a response to the protests we filed on behalf of Spooner clients who participated in 2018 Group Retro. We filed these requests to preserve our appeal rights, should we continue to be successful with the legal action that is now before the Court of Common Pleas. We have concerns that if we prevail in the legal proceedings, BWC may attempt to pay only the lead plaintiff in the case, as opposed to all Group Retro members. Why now? The final snapshot to determine refunds for the 2018 group retro program was on June 30, 2022. We filed the appeals at the end of June 2024 to comply with the two-year statute for filing protests with BWC. What should we do now? There is nothing that employers need to do at this time. If it becomes apparent that action is needed
2018 & 2019 Group Retro Update
Many of you may be wondering what the status is of the Group Retro lawsuit that we talked so much about in February. Just over two months have passed – but when it comes to legal matters, it’s not much time at all. To catch you up to speed, a magistrate determined in February that BWC abused their discretion by withholding Retro refunds. BWC had a two-week window following that 2/6/23 decision to file any objections to the decision – which of course, they did. They chose to reiterate several points from their original arguments, and indicated that they did possess the authority to change a portion of the Revised Code without going through the typical rulemaking process. Our lead plaintiff, Kent Elastomer, and their counsel at Roetzel & Andress have already filed a response to those objections. We’re waiting to see if the full court of appeals wishes to hear oral arguments or proceed with the record that has already been established. Unfortunately, there is no timetable on these next steps, but we will keep you updated here on our blog, on our LinkedIn page, and through our client services managers (if you’re a current Spooner client). If you participated in Group Retro during the 2018 or 2019 policy years and would like to be on our roster so we can fight for your refunds when the tie comes, complete this form and one of our team members will be in touch with
Initial Victory for 2018 Group Retro Refunds
Obviously, our biggest news is the legal victory in our Group Retro case! Earlier in February, a Magistrate from the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals in Columbus ruled in favor of our client Kent Elastomer Products, Inc., vacating BWC’s 2020 decision to withhold 2018 Group Retro refunds. You can read our official public statement in its entirety here. There are still a couple of hurdles to be cleared, so we’re doing our best to educate employers on the story so far, and what could happen next. As of 2/15/22, Ohio BWC had requested a two-week extension on their initial two-week appeal window. Please stay tuned for updates! Any major developments will be shared first on the Spooner Inc LinkedIn page. If you're not a Spooner Inc client, you can complete this form to request additional information about your potential
Are Missing Group Retro Refunds Complicating Your Budget for 2022?
Back in August, we told you that Ohio BWC wouldn’t be paying Group Retrospective refunds to employers who participated in Retro during the 2018 and 2019 policy years. For the past 12 years, many businesses have counted on those checks to budget for the coming year. Normally, Retro refunds would have showed up last month (October), but this time those employers were left empty-handed. Companies that were anticipating tens of thousands (hundreds of thousands, in some cases) in Retro Refunds are now faced with an end of year shortfall and difficulty budgeting. Our actuarial department estimates that Group Retro refund totals for all participating policyholders during the 2018 and 2019 policy years would have been as follows: • $190,000,000 for the 2018 policy year • $155,000,000 for the 2019 policy year That’s $345 Million in refunds not being paid back! If you are concerned with how the state is managing your premium dollars - and more importantly, your refunds - you have options. Self-insuring is one option, or you can look into a partnership with SuretyHR through our Self-Insured PEO program. This provides a lot of the same savings and benefits of self-insuring for workers’ comp, but without the risk and financial burden of directly paying excess
Group Retro Updates: 2018, 2019 & 2020
We promised to keep you informed on the status of 2018 and 2019 policy year refunds from BWC’s Group Retro program. As it stands, no employers enrolled during those years will be receiving any refunds. Typically, in the fall of 2021 Group Retro participants should be receiving your first refund from the 2019 policy year and your second refund from the 2018 year. It’s important to understand that if these refunds are normally included in your budgeting process for the coming year, you should not factor that in. For more info on why BWC chose not to release these funds, and what Spooner is doing to help Ohio employers, check out our June blog entry on these missing Group Retro Refunds. If your company was enrolled in Group Retro for the 2020 year, your first refund will be paid out in the fall of 2022. Since the 2020 policy year recently ended, we also have an updated outlook on those returns. Out of the 45 total Private Employer Group Retro pools in Ohio, data from BWC shows that 31 of them will have an assessment for their first year (due in fall 2022). This means that companies in that pool will be billed by BWC for a portion of 2020 premiums instead of receiving a refund. This is largely due to BWC moving to a system called ACES to determine reserves on claims as of July 1, 2020. We believe BWC is open to discussing changes to some of the variables used to calculate refunds in response to the impact ACES is having on 2020 Group Retro
Why We Fight (For Your Group Retro Refunds)
Many Ohio employers have rejoiced over the big checks issued by Ohio BWC in the last few years, a boast that the state’s strategies that have yielded enough to share dividends with policyholders. While it’s easy to understand the excitement when you’re getting five, six, or even seven figure checks from BWC – we all know there’s no such thing as a free lunch. Many of the businesses gladly cashed those checks not realizing that Ohio BWC wouldn’t be sending checks for refunds earned from the Group Retrospective (retro) program for the 2018 and 2019 policy years. Employers who participate in the Group Retro program are rebated after the policy year ends, based on their group’s actual performance throughout the year. The pool establishes a premium level throughout the policy year - and when the actual losses come in lower than that, the consortium members are rebated their share of the difference. While no vendors were provided with the total that Group Retro refunds would have been for those years, Spooner’s actuarial department estimates that Group Retro refund totals for all participating policyholders during those years would have been as follows: • $190,000,000 for the 2018 policy year • $155,000,000 for the 2019 policy year These projections include what would be all three years of refund payments for each policy year, not just the first y
BWC Withholds 2018 & 2019 Group Retro Refunds
The BWC is not going to pay out 2018 & 2019 Group Retro refunds this fall. They have decided the dividend rebates issued for these policy years will take the place of 2018 and 2019 Group Retro refunds. We do not believe the dividend proposal passed by the Board of Directors gives the BWC the authority to eliminate Group Retro refunds. Spooner Incorporated is appealing this decision with the BWC, but we may not be able to do it alone. Please reach out to Brian Davis if you would like to join us in the fight to get the BWC to release the 2018 and 2019 Group Retro refunds this fall. Brian can be reached
