Learn what EMR means in construction, how it affects insurance and bids, and simple ways U.S. contractors can lower their EMR in 2025.
If you're a contractor in the United States, you’ve probably heard a GC, insurer, or safety consultant talk about your EMR, sometimes in ways that feel confusing or intimidating.
Here’s the truth: Your EMR (Experience Modification Rate) is one of the most important numbers in your entire business. It affects your insurance premiums, your ability to win bids, and how clients perceive your company’s safety risk.
And yet, many contractors still aren’t totally sure how it works or why a single incident can push their EMR up for years.
This guide explains EMR in plain language (no math degree needed) and gives you simple strategies to improve it.
If you’re unsure what’s driving your EMR up, or whether it’s affecting your bids, we can walk you through it. Get a quick, clear breakdown and practical steps to improve it.
EMR (Experience Modification Rate) is a number insurance companies use to measure your company’s past workers’ compensation claims compared to similar contractors in your industry.
In the United States:
1.0 is average
Below 1.0 = better than average (lower risk)
Above 1.0 = higher than average (higher risk)
Your EMR directly impacts two things:
How much you pay for workers’ compensation insurance
Whether general contractors approve you in their prequalification process
In practical terms:
Your EMR is seen as a score of how safely you operate.
In the U.S., EMR is one of the first safety indicators clients and insurers look at.
Here’s why it’s such a big deal:
Even a small increase, say from 1.0 to 1.2, can cost tens of thousands of dollars annually.
Many general contractors require an EMR of 0.90 or lower for high-risk or industrial projects.
A high EMR can quietly block you from:
Government contracts
Large commercial jobs
Industrial shutdown and turnaround work
Prequalification systems like Avetta, ISNetworld, or internal GC screens
If you’ve had injuries, lost-time claims, or repeated hazards, they show up here.
That means a single bad year can impact:
Premiums
Bid acceptance
Profitability
Growth opportunities
Contractors who want to scale simply can’t ignore EMR.
Insurance companies compare:
Your actual workers’ comp losses
vs.
The expected losses for a company of your size and trade
The formula isn’t something most contractors calculate manually, but the concept is simple:
If your company has fewer or less severe claims than similar contractors, your EMR goes down. If you have more or worse claims, your EMR goes up.
Because one injury represents a much larger percentage of your total payroll and workforce.
That’s why small construction companies often feel like:
“One claim destroyed our EMR.”
And in many cases, that’s exactly what happens.
Here’s how most insurers and GCs interpret EMR:
| EMR Score | How Clients Interpret It |
|---|---|
| 0.70–0.90 | Strong safety performance; preferred contractor |
| 1.0 | Average risk |
| 1.1–1.25 | Higher than average; often triggers insurance surcharges |
| 1.25+ | High risk; may be disqualified from large jobs |
If you want to compete for federal, industrial, or commercial projects, aim for 0.90 or lower.
Based on thousands of safety reviews across U.S. construction companies, EMR typically rises due to:
Many contractors have:
A generic safety manual
A few forms
Some PPE reminders
A consultant who shows up once a year
This doesn’t prevent claims and insurers know it.
Near misses turn into recordables.
Recordables turn into claims.
Claims turn into a higher EMR.
This leads to:
Missed inspections
Incomplete hazard assessments
Corrective actions not closed out
If fieldworkers don’t actually use the safety tools, you don’t get visibility — and hazards slip through.
Watching a video ≠ learning.
OSHA emphasizes that training must be:
task-specific
understandable
reinforced
documented
This is often the big one.
Contractors routinely report:
“One claim blew up our insurance premium and made our EMR shoot up.”
EMR isn’t just affected by how often claims happen, but how expensive they are.
To earn a lower EMR, you don’t need complex software or a full safety department, you need consistency.
Here are proven steps:
OSHA’s leading indicator data shows that proactive hazard identification reduces claims significantly.
Field-friendly checklists
Short hazard assessments
Photo documentation
These are simple, high-impact tools.
A minor cut today can be tomorrow’s lost-time claim.
A strong incident investigation process:
Identifies root causes
Tracks corrective actions
Reduces repeat injuries
This directly lowers claims.
Workers follow the foreman.
If supervisors are passive about safety, EMR rises over time.
Your crews don’t need another app with 14 menus.
They need:
quick forms
simple workflows
clear instructions
When safety is easy, it gets done.
When it gets done, claims go down.
Many U.S. contractors can’t justify:
a full-time safety manager
a safety coordinator
a dedicated compliance team
But they still need:
OSHA-aligned policies
consistent inspections
incident follow-up
documentation ready for prequalification
A managed safety program gives you the results of a safety department without the payroll burden.
This is one of the most reliable ways to lower EMR.
Myth 1: “A single claim won’t affect EMR much.”
Reality: For small contractors, one claim can raise EMR for three years.
Myth 2: “We can’t control EMR, it’s all insurance math.”
Reality: EMR is fully tied to preventable injuries.
Myth 3: “We just need to fix our EMR before renewal.”
Reality: EMR changes annually and is based on a 3-year lookback.
Myth 4: “Training videos are enough to prevent claims.”
Reality: OSHA requires task-specific, documented, worker-understandable training.
Myth 5: “Paperwork equals safety.”
Reality: Claims, not forms, determine EMR.
If you’ve ever been denied a bid with little explanation, EMR may be the reason. General contractors in the U.S. commonly use EMR as a fast risk filter.
If your EMR is:
Above 1.0: You may be flagged
Above 1.25: You may be automatically removed
Above 1.3: Many won’t consider you without a variance plan
They do this because:
High EMR predicts future claims
Claims slow down projects
Incidents expose the GC legally
Insurance costs rise for everyone
Your EMR is not just an insurance number, it’s a business-growth number.
Once per year.
Your workers’ compensation insurance rating bureau, often NCCI (National Council on Compensation Insurance) unless your state runs its own system.
No, it affects your ability to win contracts, your reputation, and your perceived risk.
Yes. With fewer and lower-severity claims, and with proper documentation of effective safety practices.
Absolutely. Consistent hazard control, incident management, and training directly influence the claim patterns that determine EMR.
Most contractors think they need:
better forms
a new manual
different software
But what they actually need is what large companies already have:
A real safety department, one they don’t have to hire internally.
A managed safety program helps lower EMR by:
preventing claims with proactive hazard management
improving documentation needed for insurers and GCs
training supervisors to lead safer work
keeping field inspections consistent
providing expert OSHA-aligned guidance
coordinating incident investigations and follow-up
For contractors between 10–100 workers, this is often the fastest and most cost-effective way to reduce claims and strengthen your EMR.
Your EMR is more than a score, it’s a direct reflection of your company’s safety practices, your claim history, and your future opportunities.
Lowering your EMR isn’t about paperwork.
It’s about running a predictable, consistent safety process that reduces injuries.
If you want help understanding what's driving your EMR, or how to reduce it, we can walk you through it.
Book a quick EMR review and get a safety improvement plan tailored to your company.
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