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Key Takeaways

  • EMR is the Experience Modification Rate on workers’ compensation. Insurers set it by examining claims history, site safety practices, and worker training. A rate between 0.4 and roughly 0.75 is considered low, and a contractor earning one pays less for coverage.
  • A low EMR is a schedule and budget signal, not just a safety one. Fewer incidents mean fewer change-order delays tied to accidents, lower downtime risk on occupied facilities, and stronger pre-task planning. Documented safety programs also move faster through prequalification and bid review.
  • Roofing carries real risk, and insurers price it carefully. Steep-slope work creates fall hazards, and even low-slope roofs put crews near unprotected perimeters. Carriers run audits, review national injury statistics, and examine a contractor’s training programs before assigning a rate.
  • KPost has held rates in the high 0.4s to high 0.5s. 0.58 for 2017 to 2018, 0.51 for 2018 to 2019, 0.49 for 2019 to 2020, and 0.50 for 2020 to 2021. Four consecutive years inside the range insurers treat as low risk.
  • Training staff is what produces the number. KPost keeps a bilingual Construction Safety Health Official, three bilingual CERTA torch trainers, and a bilingual 500-hour OSHA trainer on staff. In 2017 alone the safety team logged more than 15,000 hours of training.

Any facilities manager or commercial property owner has, inevitably, run up against an insurer. From property to liability to workers’ compensation insurance, the property you manage is linked to insurance. That does not mean, though, that you as a property manager are completely familiar with every insurance concept, such as experience modification rate, or EMR. Understanding EMR can benefit you and lower your costs.

EMR

When insurers analyze a prospective business, they study things like workers’ compensation claims, site safety, and worker training. Insurers love companies with low rates of workers compensation claims, histories of safety training and scrupulous safety habits.

The low workers’ compensation claims result in an Experience Modification Rate, or EMR, which drops the cost of workers’ compensation insurance. A commercial roofer that earns a low EMR (between 0.4 and, often, 0.75) can pass insurance savings on to clients, such as a commercial property owner.

Risk Assessment

Commercial roofing is inherently risky. Steep-slope roofs create slip and fall hazards, but even low-slope roofs bring risks of missteps at the roof perimeter. An insurer offering a roofing company liability and workers compensation insurance wants to know, how risky is that work?

Insurers run audits, study national statistics, research the roofer’s training programs, and dig deep to get a reliable risk rating.

Fortunate Few

KPost Company is one of the fortunate few commercial roofers to earn consistently low EMRs over the years:

  • 2017- 2018 — 0.58
  • 2018-2019 — 0.51
  • 2019-2020 — 0.49
  • 2020-2021 — 0.50

How does KPost Company earn reduced EMRs from its insurer?

Simple: we emphasize safety, quality, and value — in that order. We do not attempt to save a buck by risking our luck.

We maintain very high standards of safety excellence. We invest in our team. KPost Company has on staff:

  • 1 bilingual Construction Safety Health Official (CSHA)
  • 3 bilingual CERTA torch trainers
  • 1 500-hour, bilingual OSHA trainer

These trainers have as their mission the proper training for every employee to complete each job safely and efficiently. In 2017 our training and safety staff recorded over 15,000 hours of training. Why? So we can keep our employees safe, of course, but also so we can provide our customers with impeccable service that is safe, of the highest quality, and lasting value.

How EMR Impacts Project Risk, Schedules, and Cost

A strong Experience Modification Rate signals fewer incidents and better controls on job sites. For owners and GCs, that often translates to tighter schedules, lower downtime risk, and crews who work within strict safety protocols. We share our safety training cadence, job hazard analyses, and near-miss reporting so stakeholders understand how safety shows up on your roof.

  • Fewer incidents mean fewer change-order delays tied to accidents
  • Better pre-task planning lowers risk on occupied facilities
  • Documented programs ease prequalification and bid reviews

Explore our service capabilities on Commercial Repairs & Service and Commercial Installation & Replacement. For lifecycle control across your portfolio, see our Umbrella Program for planned inspections and budgeting.

Please reach out to us at KPost Company for your next roofing project. We are eager to show you how safety, value, and quality are our priorities. Contact us today!

FAQs

Most general contractors and owners set the threshold at 1.0 or below, and many large projects require 0.85 or better. An EMR of 1.0 is the industry average, so anything above it means the contractor has had more workers compensation losses than expected for their trade and payroll. KPost has held rates in the high 0.4s to high 0.5s, which sits well inside the range that qualifies for restricted projects.

It compares a contractor’s actual workers compensation losses over a three-year period against the expected losses for a company of that size and trade, then expresses the result as a multiplier. The most recent completed policy year is excluded, so the number always reflects a rolling window rather than the current year. Because it is a three-year average, a single bad year affects a contractor’s rate for three renewal cycles.

They measure different things and prequalification packets usually ask for all three. EMR comes from insurance loss data and compares a contractor’s workers compensation claims against what would be expected for their trade and payroll. TRIR, the total recordable incident rate, comes from OSHA logs and counts recordable injuries per 200,000 hours worked. DART tracks the subset of those injuries that resulted in days away, restricted duty, or job transfer. A contractor can look acceptable on one number and poor on another, which is why owners request the full set.

Look for OSHA-trained supervision, documented fall protection and hot-work programs, and trade-specific certifications such as CERTA for torch-applied roofing. Bilingual training matters in this market, because a safety program only works if every crew member understands it. KPost keeps a bilingual Construction Health and Safety Official, three bilingual CERTA torch trainers, and a bilingual 500-hour OSHA trainer on staff.

That depends on your prequalification requirements and your insurer, and many owners exclude contractors above a set threshold outright. Even where a high-EMR contractor is allowed to bid, the owner takes on more exposure, since incidents on a project can affect the owner’s own experience and liability position. Requesting the EMR letter from the carrier during prequalification takes one email and settles the question. Our safety, quality and value page covers how KPost’s program is structured.
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