Includes examinations, treatments and rehabilitation.
Gives employees time to recover from an injury before returning to work.
Helps employees who need to learn skills and enter a new field.
Provides benefits for employees who can no longer work due to injury.
All Idaho employers with one or more employees must have workers’ compensation insurance. This requirement applies for full-time, part-time, seasonal and occasional employees.1
Contractors and subcontractors may also be considered employees according to Idaho workers’ compensation law.
Workers’ comp insurance is important not only for protecting employees, but also for minimizing financial risk for your business. If an employee suffers from a work-related injury or illness, this insurance can help cover the cost of:
According to state laws for workman’s comp, Idaho provides a number of exemptions from the requirement to carry insurance, including:
Certain types of business owners and leaders may also be exempt from workers’ compensation coverage, such as:
Although the types of business owners listed above do not need workers’ comp for themselves, it’s important to note that they must still have coverage for any employees working for their business.
Don’t assume that just because you’re not required to have coverage as a business owner that it’s not worth getting workers’ comp insurance. This type of coverage can help protect your finances if you were to suffer an injury on the job.
For example, if you’re a personal trainer and you injure your back teaching a class, you might be unable to work with clients for several weeks. If you have workers’ comp coverage, you could get help paying for your medical expenses and be reimbursed for lost wages.
Some large employers may be eligible to self-insure for workers’ compensation. Idaho’s application requirements for self-insurance include:2
If written approval is obtained from the Industrial Commission, the business is permitted to self-insure, meaning that they assume all financial risk for workers’ comp claims directly rather than covering them through an insurance policy.
Workers’ compensation insurance provides benefits for employees who get injured or become ill at work. It’s required by law in Idaho to ensure basic financial protections for workers.
By having workers’ comp coverage, businesses can make sure their employees get the benefits they need without being directly liable financially.
Idaho workers’ comp helps pay for the costs of work-related injuries to employees and covered business owners, such as:
For example, imagine you own a civil engineering firm. One of your employees falls and breaks an ankle at a work site. Instead of being directly liable for their medical expenses and lost wages, your workers’ comp policy will pay out benefits directly to the employee.
Certain workers’ compensation income benefits may apply when an employee is seriously injured. Types of income benefits in Idaho include:
The worker is able to return to part-time or modified work during recovery, but is receiving less than their typical earnings.
The worker is unable to return to work at all until they have recovered sufficiently.
The result of the worker’s injury is permanent, but they are able to return to the same or some other type of work.
The worker’s injury results in total and permanent disability which makes them unable to work.3
If an employee dies as the result of a work-related injury or disease, their surviving spouse may be eligible for benefits for 500 weeks. Children of the deceased typically receive benefits until age 18. Compensation for funeral expenses may be provided if the death occurs within four years of the work-related injury or disease.
If you’re an employer in Idaho, there are certain responsibilities related to workers’ comp coverage that you must take on. These responsibilities include:
Idaho permits employees to temporarily work from select surrounding states without the need for a separate workers’ compensation policy.5 These states include:
To maintain coverage while an employee is working out of state, the employer must ask the Idaho Industrial Commission to request an extraterritorial certificate from the agency in that state responsible for administering their workers’ compensation law. These certificates are valid for a maximum of six months, but may be renewed with approval from the reciprocating state.6
Similarly, out-of-state employers may request permission for extraterritorial coverage if they wish to have their employees work in Idaho on a temporary or intermittent basis. Idaho’s extraterritorial certificates are initially issued for a six-month period. Some out-of-state employers may qualify for a six-month extension.7
In Idaho, workers’ comp is required for telecommuting employees. This includes employees who work for an out-of-state employer. The work-from-home employees in Idaho must be covered by a workers’ compensation insurance policy that is endorsed for Idaho.
Operating without the required workers’ compensation insurance is considered a misdemeanor, so employers who violate this law may be subject to criminal penalties.
Employers who are found to be operating without workers’ comp insurance may have to pay a penalty of $2 per day per employee or $25 per day, whichever is greater, for the time period in which they have failed to obtain coverage.
The Idaho Industrial Commission may also obtain an injunction to shut down operations while a business is in violation of the workers’ compensation law.
If you are an employer and you do not have workers’ compensation coverage when a worker is injured on the job, you will be personally liable for all benefits provided under Idaho workers’ compensation law, including medical expenses and lost wages.
In addition, you’ll be subject to an additional penalty of 10% of the total benefits as well as any attorney fees for the attorney representing the injured worker.
The rates for workers’ comp coverage are determined on a case-by-case basis. Your insurance carrier will consider a number of factors in determining the cost of your premiums, including:
At NEXT Insurance, we offer workers’ compensation insurance designed for small businesses and sole proprietors.
We make it easy to do everything online so you can get a quote, review your coverage options, purchase a policy and download your certificate of insurance in just 10 minutes. And if you need any help along the way, our team of licensed insurance advisors is standing by to answer your questions via phone or email.
Start an instant quote online today.
General liability insurance is a must for most businesses since it provides coverage for common accidents and mistakes, like damage to someone’s property or customer injuries.
Commercial auto insurance is essential if you or your employees drive for work. It provides coverage for expenses resulting from accidents in a business-owned vehicle or a personal vehicle used for work.
Professional liability insurance provides financial protection for mistakes you or your employees make on the job as well as claims of professional negligence.
1 Workers’ Compensation Employers FAQs
2 IDAPA 17.01.01: Administrative Rules Under the Workers’ Compensation Law
3 Workers’ Compensation Injured Workers FAQs
4 Workers’ Compensation Employer Information
5 Extraterritorial Coverage and Reciprocity
6 Working Across State Lines: Idaho Reciprocity and Extraterritorial Coverage
Learn more about workers’ compensation insurance options in the state where you work.
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