Horry County Council has discussed the amount of emergency vehicles involved in accidents over the past two years and determined that close to 50 accidents have occurred including an ambulance, police car, or other medical vehicle since 2015.
When county employed personnel are injured, they are able to file a worker's compensation claim. With the rise of accidents, the costs occurred for worker's compensation insurance goes to the taxpayers.
County Council has debated whether incentives like dinners, or even a pay raise, for those who have safe driving records and no accidents would be a good plan. Giving a pay raise would be less expensive than rising insurance costs due to accidents. They hope that incentives would increase safe habits.
There is also a recognized need for more training that could cut injuries and accidents down.
Information shows that in addition to accidents, other claims have increased worker's compensation insurance by $1 million. Total costs for the coming year are expected to be more than $3.6 million.
With increased training and incentives, the hope is that claims will be reduced and costs will be lowered. The council would like to see the saved costs transferred to salaries instead of insurance premiums.
Safety is important and saving taxpayers money is a goal of the council but accidents and injuries will still unfortunately happen.
Have You Been Injured On The Job?
If you've been hurt at your job you can speak with a workers' compensation lawyer. Please contact us online or call our Charleston, South Carolina office directly at 843.488.2359 to schedule your consultation. We are also able to meet clients at our Conway, Myrtle Beach, Murrells Inlet, Mt. Pleasant, North Myrtle Beach or North Charleston office locations.
