Ranney Pageler (pictured) is vice president of the FraudInvestigations Department at EMPLOYERS, which offersworkers' compensation insurance and services through EmployersInsurance Company of Nevada, Employers Compensation Insurance Co.,Employers Preferred Insurance Co. and Employers Assurance Co. Formore information, please contact Ranney at [email protected] visit www.employers.com.

Workers' compensation insurance premium fraud is a seriousproblem. Not only is it illegal, it adversely affects the bottomlines of producers and carriers, and leads to higher insurancepremiums for honest businesses. It causes a loss in commission foragents, creates an unfair business advantage for the perpetrator(affording a “bidding/sales advantage” due to their reducedoperating costs) and has a negative impact on a state's rate-makingsystem.

Equipped with the right information, independent insuranceagents – who are a key conduit between policyholders and insurancecarriers – can play a valuable role in identifying and preventingworkers' compensation insurance premium fraud.