Qualifying as a Self-Insured Employer in Alaska
Requirements
8 AAC 46.010(a) provides that an employer may self-insure its workers' compensation liability in Alaska if it has:
(1) been in business within Alaska for at least five years immediately preceding the filing of the application;
(2) a safety/loss control program;
(3) in combination with its parent company or subsidiary companies of the employer, a minimum of 100 employees either in Alaska or in another state or states; and
(4) a net worth of at least $10,000,000.
In addition to these requirements, 8 AAC 46.010(b) provides an employer must also have:
(1) the financial ability to meet the self-insured’s financial obligations in Alaska;
(2) available claims facilities through its own staffed adjusting facilities located within the state or through independent, licensed, resident adjusters with power to effect settlement within the state. For purposes of this paragraph, insurance companies with a certificate of authority from the Department of Commerce and Economic Development’s Division of Insurance, and with staff adjusters in this state, are considered independent, licensed, resident adjusters; and
(3) agreed to post any security deposit required.
The Alaska Workers' Compensation Board will, in its discretion, waive the requirement in 8 AAC 46.010(a)(1) if:
(1) the employer has self-insured its workers' compensation obligations in another jurisdiction for a period of at least five years immediately preceding the filing of the application; or
(2) the employer is a wholly-owned subsidiary and its parent company has been in business for at least five years immediately preceding filing and guarantees the subsidiary's obligations under the Act.
Under 8 AAC 46.010(d), an employer that is a majority or wholly-owned subsidiary must have the employer’s obligations under the Act guaranteed by its parent company.
Filing Requirements
An application for a Certificate of Self-Insurance must be made on
Form 07-6129
.
An applicant that has multiple subsidiaries must list each subsidiary to be covered under the certificate of self-insurance, including the legal name, mailing address, federal identification number, and ownership information for each subsidiary.
When the applicant is a wholly owned subsidiary of another company, a Parent Company Guarantee must be included with the Application for Certificate of Self-Insurance.
If the applicant is a joint venture, the partner with the majority interest in the venture must be self-insured in Alaska, or qualified to be self-insured in this state. The joint venture application must include financial information for each partner in the venture, and the application must be accompanied by a copy of the joint venture’s operating agreement.
The application must be accompanied by the applicant's audited financial statements for the three fiscal or calendar years immediately preceding the filing of the application. The applicant may submit consolidated financial statements of its parent company if the applicant does not have its own audited financial statements and the employer is a majority or wholly-owned subsidiary. A public entity must submit audited comprehensive annual financial reports, including detailed schedules.
The applicant shall provide a summary of the employer’s or the employer’s parent company payroll and loss runs for the three fiscal years or calendar years preceding the filing of the application. The summary must be categorized by year, and include the number of employees, amount of payroll, number of medical-only claims, number of indemnity claims, number of fatalities, the dollar amount of total incurred losses, the dollar amount of paid losses, the dollar amount of reserves for incurred but unpaid losses, the dollar amount of losses within the retention limit, the dollar amount of losses subject to reinsurance or excess recovery, and the dollar amount of losses subject to subrogation recovery.
The applicant shall submit a description of its proposed excess insurance coverage, including effective dates, type of coverage, conditions and exclusions, with specific and aggregate retentions and policy limits. Excess coverage must be written by a casualty insurance company or reinsurance company authorized to transact business in Alaska, and must be rated A- or higher with a stable outlook by a nationally recognized rating organization.
The application for self-insurance must be accompanied by a security deposit in the form of an irrevocable letter of credit from a financial institution authorized to conduct business in Alaska under AS 06.01.010-06.40.190, with the State of Alaska, Department of Labor and Workforce Development listed as the beneficiary. The amount of the security deposit must be in the amount of $600,000 or 125% of the total outstanding accrued self-insured workers’ compensation liabilities for the year immediately preceding the application, whichever amount is greater.
The applicant shall submit with the application a detailed outline of its safety/loss control program.
The above material shall be mailed to the Department of Labor at least 90 days prior to the expiration of its Certificate of Self-Insurance.
Division of Workers’ Compensation
P.O. Box 115512
Juneau, AK 99811-5512
