You shouldn’t need to take an Advil before dealing with your workers’ compensation insurance payroll reports.

Although filling out these reports can be complicated, we can make the process less painful. Before filling out your reports, let’s review the essential information you need, including which professionals to coordinate with and how the process usually works.

Filling Out a Workers’ Compensation Insurance Payroll Report

Having the correct paperwork and documentation is half the battle when submitting your workers’ comp insurance payroll reports. Choosing the best local insurance agent to help you step-by-step with your workers’ compensation insurance is often where businesses get stuck.

In addition, finding the right payroll company that works seamlessly with your agent is the next hurdle. The good news is that our team at ConnectPay can help you with both.

Our payroll specialists get your payroll services set up and work in unison with your workers’ compensation insurance broker. Before you dive into the rest of this article - if you know you need assistance getting set up, connect with one of our ConnectPay small business payroll specialists to get started.

Reporting Frequency and Due Dates

Depending on your state, you may need to submit reports on a quarterly or annual basis. Some states, like California, require report submissions yearly when it comes time for your annual audit. But in other cases, like in Oregon, every company has different payroll reporting period dates that they must submit their reports on.

Reporting Responsibility

When it comes to workers’ comp insurance payroll reporting, one of the most common questions we hear is who is responsible for submitting our company’s report?

Your workers’ compensation payroll report needs to be submitted by your company. At ConnectPay, we recommend coordinating your paperwork with your audit representative to ensure all your forms are being filled out correctly.

Although it's your company’s responsibility to manage reporting, your payroll provider also plays a role in your submission. The role of your payroll provider is to give you the particular payroll reports you will need come audit time. Most payroll providers give you monthly summaries and receipts, but some payroll providers can assist you further. 

At ConnectPay, we provide quarterly tax reports and a gross payroll report so you can seamlessly meet your deadlines. If your company submits your insurance policy information to us, we can even create a more generic workers’ compensation report upon request.

Classifications and Exceptions

Before submitting your workers’ compensation insurance payroll reports, you will need to collect information about your classifications and exceptions. Workers’ compensation audits determine if your current classification codes are still accurate. Often, unless you’re using pay-as-you-go workers’ comp insurance, companies get quoted at one price and end up overusing or underusing their coverage. By the end of the year, if your classification codes don’t match your actual payroll, you’ll end up under or overpaying.

Specifically, the information you will need to collect is your:

• Authorized Classifications
• Standard Exception Classifications

Inclusions

You should collect basic information for your audit representative, such as details about your company operations and the total number of employees and contractors. Depending on your state, you may also need to provide detailed job descriptions for each of your employees, contractors, and subcontractors. We recommend including this information at the beginning of your report, so your audit representative has all the essential information they need.

Be sure to prepare the following information before meeting with your audit representative:

• Wages
• Commissions
• Bonuses
• Holiday Pay, Sick Pay, Vacations
• Other Payments (profit sharing, incentive plants, etc.)
• Allowances
• Lodging, etc.
• Salary Reductions (savings, retirement, etc.)
• Reimbursements
• Shift Differentials

Exclusions

Documenting proof of your exclusions is another essential aspect of workers’ compensation insurance payroll reporting.

The following exclusions should be provided in your documentation for your audit representative:

• Excess overtime
• Tips
• Pension plans
• Fringe benefits
• Active military duty
• Perks

Other Considerations

We recommend discussing your exact reporting requirements with your local insurance agent as there may be additional inclusions, exclusions, and considerations in your specific policy, state, or insurance company.

These are some examples of additional considerations that could apply to you:

• Special Coverages
• Changes in Operations
• Auditing

Related: Payroll Services for Small Businesses 

The Best Way to Fill Out a Workers’ Comp Payroll Report

If you want peace of mind, it’s essential to be prepared with the proper documentation from the start. The best way to ensure your reporting is done on time and accurately is to have the correct information and documents ready to go for your audit representative.

When choosing your payroll provider, it’s important to consider how they help with workers’ compensation insurance audits and payroll reporting. We would love to get you set up with our comprehensive payroll services so you can avoid common problems that many companies run into during audit time. Chat with one of our small business payroll specialists to get set up today.