Policyholder Bob Westbrook talks about what his partnership with Texas Mutual means to his business

Mr. Westbrook is also featured in our 2011 annual report. It documents a banner year in which we paid approximately $170 million in policyholder dividends. Get the report on our website at http://www.texasmutual.com/news/2011ar/Texas-Mutual-2011-Annual-Report.pdf

Texas Mutual Rewards Three Safety Groups With $435K in Dividends

Texas Mutual Insurance Company announced today that three workers’ compensation safety groups have earned a combined $435,324 in dividends. The dividends were based largely on each group’s overall loss ratio.

The largest dividend, $261,132, went to the Texas Automotive Safety Group. The group has earned $651,000 in Texas Mutual dividends since 2010.

Members of the Texas Lodging Safety Group earned a $137,587 dividend, nearly doubling their 2011 dividend.

The $36,605 dividend check that went to the Texas Produce Association safety group marked the group’s seventh consecutive Texas Mutual dividend.

Unlike publicly traded insurance companies, mutual insurance companies are owned by their policyholders. Dividends allow Texas Mutual to share its financial success with its policyholder owners.

In addition to potential dividends, safety group members get discounts on their workers’ compensation premiums. They also have access to workplace safety materials designed for their operations.

Texas Mutual notes that past dividends are not a guarantee of future dividends, and the Texas Department of Insurance must approve all dividends.

Two Indicted in Travis County on Workers’ Comp Fraud Charges

Texas Mutual Insurance Company reported today that Travis County grand juries indicted, in separate cases, Curtis L. Blankenship, Sr. of San Antonio and Melody Tendayi of Austin on workers’ compensation fraud-related charges.

Blankenship, a Texas Mutual policyholder, reported a company fatality involving his son as a work-related accident. As a result, Texas Mutual began paying death benefits to him. Meanwhile, a Texas Mutual investigation uncovered evidence that Blankenship knew the fatality was not work-related.

The indictment alleges that Blankenship obtained $39,000 in workers’ compensation benefits he was not entitled to.

In an unrelated case, Tendayi reported a job-related injury while working as a youth care worker for Youth and Family Alliance in Austin. She claimed she was unable to work as a result of the injury, and Texas Mutual began paying income benefits to her.

Meanwhile, Texas Mutual uncovered evidence that Tendayi worked for another company while receiving income benefits.

The indictment alleges that Tendayi obtained $5,762 in workers’ compensation benefits she was not entitled to.

Note: A grand jury indictment is a formal accusation – not a conviction – of criminal conduct.

Texas Supreme Court Decision Reaffirms Important Fundamental Workers’ Comp Right

In a decision that workers’ compensation experts say is good for Texas employees and employers alike, the Supreme Court of Texas recently issued a unanimous opinion that bars negligence claims against policyholders. The Port Elevator-Brownsville v. Casados case reversed a previous judgment from the Corpus Christi Court of Appeals and rendered judgment for Port Elevator. 

The Supreme Court upheld Texas’ main legal tenet that employers cannot, intentionally or unintentionally, split their workforce to leave some employees uninsured. The court’s opinion states that a key purpose of the rule against split workforces is that employees know whether they have the protections of workers’ compensation coverage.

“This decision is great for Texas workers because it assures them that they will be covered, and it reinforces a longstanding workers’ compensation rule,” Mary Barrow Nichols, general counsel and senior vice president for Texas Mutual, said. “This straightforward ruling from the Texas Supreme Court is also positive for Texas employers, because it strengthens the exclusive remedy protection given to workers’ compensation policyholders.”

Previously, the court of appeals awarded nearly $3 million in damages to the family of a temporary worker who died on the job at Port Elevator. Texas Mutual provided workers’ compensation insurance for Port Elevator, and the temporary staffing company had workers’ compensation through another insurance company. The plaintiffs claimed that Port Elevator intended to and did exclude the worker from its workers’ compensation coverage on various theories rejected by the court. The court held that an employee may have more than one employer, and each employer who has workers’ compensation insurance is entitled to the exclusive remedy as a bar to claims about the injury.

Restaurants Enjoy Texas Mutual Dividends

Texas Mutual presented safety group dividend checks to members of the Texas Restaurant Association Safety Group.   Learn more about the dividend program and other advantages of Texas Mutual coverage in the below video.

 

Texas Mutual Awards $300K in Safety Education Grants

Texas Mutual Insurance Company has awarded a combined $300,000 in grants to Kilgore College, Midland College and College of the Mainland in Texas City. The grants will continue to fund free workplace safety courses for employers, employees and the general public through the colleges’ risk management institutes.

Since 1999 Texas Mutual—the state’s leading provider of workers’ compensation insurance—has awarded a combined $2.8 million in safety education grants, and 20,000 students have attended free safety courses at the three colleges over the past 13 years.

“We are grateful for the support that Texas Mutual continues to show Kilgore College and the emphasis the company places on safety education in the workplace,” said William Holda, Ph.D., president of Kilgore College. “Since the beginning of our partnership with Texas Mutual, the KC Risk Management Institute has been a valuable resource for area employees and employers. It has not only proved to be an important educational tool for participants, but has also helped to make them more competitive in today’s job market.”

Courses at the safety institutes include general topics, such as ergonomic safety and OSHA standards, but students may also choose to attend courses tailored to the dominant industries in the Houston, Midland and Kilgore areas.

In addition to these safety grants, Texas Mutual hosts free workers’ compensation workshops across the state for local employers. The workshops include a presentation by Texas Mutual safety professionals and an opportunity for continuing education on workplace safety, workers’ compensation and fraud prevention.

“These grants and workshops exemplify Texas Mutual’s ongoing commitment to workplace safety and prevention of workplace accidents through education,” said Bob Barnes, chairman of the Texas Mutual board of directors. “We recognize the value safety education provides to employers—giving them tools to keep their businesses, and more importantly, their employees safe. Safety education is always a sound investment.”

For more information about the workshops and safety courses, visit texasmutual.com.

Midland Business Pleads Guilty to Hiding Payroll from Texas Mutual

Texas Mutual Insurance Company reported today that AB Abatement, Inc. of Midland, Texas, pled to workers’ compensation fraud-related charges. A Travis County district court ordered AB Abatement, Inc. to pay $70,000 in restitution to Texas Mutual and a $1,000 fine.

Vanco Insulation, Inc., owned by Robert Crow of Midland, obtained workers’ compensation coverage through Texas Mutual from April 2003 to October 2006. During that time, related company, AB Abatement, Inc., misrepresented numbers of employees and payroll associated with the Vanco Insulation, Inc. policies to Texas Mutual.

Because workers’ compensation insurance premium is based, in part, on payroll, this type of scheme results in an employer being charged a lower premium than it actually owes. By hiding payroll, an employer can gain an unfair advantage over competitors.

Workplace safety pays for San Antonio restaurants

San Antonio restaurateurs receive a dividend check for workplace safety. Pictured (from left to right): Yolanda Arellano, San Antonio Restaurant Assocation; Joe Guerra, Mi Tierra; Jon Lindskog, Cheesy Jane’s (Big Burgers of Texas); Robin Patterson, Burger King (St. Juste Management Corporation); and Terry Frakes, Texas Mutual

Twenty-nine San Antonio restaurateurs received a share of $310,787 in workers’ compensation dividends from Texas Mutual Insurance Company this week. The dividend was a reward for the Texas Restaurant Association safety group’s workplace safety record.

Terry Frakes of Texas Mutual and Scott Lea of TRA delivered the check. The San Antonio Business Journal was on hand to cover the event.

Houston Man Pleads Guilty to Hiding Payroll from Texas Mutual

Texas Mutual Insurance Company reported today that Marvin Solano of Houston pled guilty to workers’ compensation fraud-related charges. A Travis County district court ordered Solano to pay $140,038 to Texas Mutual, pay a fine of $1,000, serve 10 years of deferred adjudication and perform 300 hours of community service.

Solano owned Elamar, Ltd., doing business as Mastercare Gardens. He obtained workers’ compensation coverage through Texas Mutual from February 2006 to May 2008. During that time, he concealed payroll through various family operated companies he controlled.

Because workers’ compensation premium is based, in part, on payroll, this type of scheme results in an employer being charged a lower premium than it actually owes. By hiding payroll, an employer can gain an unfair advantage over competitors.

Workers’ Comp Fraud Scheme Costs Texas Business $149K

Texas Mutual Insurance Company reported today that Granbury Contracting & Utilities, Inc. of Granbury, Texas pled guilty to workers’ compensation fraud-related charges. A Travis County district court ordered the company to pay $149,000 in restitution to Texas Mutual.

Granbury Contracting & Utilities, Inc., owned by Wayne Wienecke, obtained workers’ compensation coverage through Texas Mutual from November 2003 to April 2008. During that time, Granbury Contracting & Utilities, Inc. misrepresented numbers of employees and payroll to Texas Mutual.

Because workers’ compensation insurance premium is based, in part, on payroll, this type of scheme results in an employer being charged a lower premium than it actually owes. By hiding payroll, an employer can gain an unfair advantage over competitors.