34:15-77. Employer carrying own insurance

Any employer desiring to carry his own liability insurance may make application to the Commissioner of Insurance showing his financial ability to pay compensation. The commissioner, if satisfied of the applicant's financial ability and the permanence of his business, shall by written order exempt the applicant from insuring the whole or any part of his compensation liability.

The commissioner may from time to time require any employer exempted as herein provided to furnish further statements of financial ability and if at any time it appears to him that any such employer is no longer financially able to carry the risk of compensation liability the commissioner shall revoke his order granting exemption, whereupon the employer shall immediately insure his liability under this chapter in a mutual association or other insurance company authorized to engage in workers' compensation in this State.

Whenever the commissioner is not satisfied with the financial ability and the permanence of the business of an employer exempted as herein provided, or of a new applicant for exemption, he may consider, and shall have the authority to accept, as evidence of such ability to pay compensation, (a) a guaranty by the parent corporation of such applicant that said parent corporation will discharge the applicant's liability under this chapter; (b) a separate account or reserve fund, or any deposit thereupon, maintained by an applicant to discharge his liability under this chapter; (c) a surety bond executed by an association or corporation licensed to do business in this State, provided the surety on any such surety bond undertakes to discharge the applicant's liability under this chapter; or (d) a contract of an employer with an insurance carrier covering liability for a portion of the compensation required under article 2, chapter 15, Title 34 of the Revised Statutes.

Any employer or group of employers exempted as herein provided may for its own protection insure its liability for the payment of any stated loss in excess of $100,000.00 by reason of any single accident or by reason of occupational diseases scheduled in this chapter; provided, that any such contract of insurance shall operate only between the employer or group of employers and its insurance carrier and shall not be subject to any of the provisions of this chapter.

An application pertaining only to a change of name of a presently exempt employer, without any change in the financial structure of said employer, shall not be considered as a new application for exemption under this act.

Pursuant to rules and regulations established by the Commissioner of Insurance, 10 or more employers licensed by the State as hospitals under the "Health Care Facilities Planning Act," P.L.1971, c. 136 (C. 26:2H-1 et seq.) may make application to the commissioner for permission to enter into agreements to pool their liabilities under this chapter for the purpose of qualifying as self-insurers. An employer member of the approved group shall be classified as a self-insurer.

Amended by L.1968, c. 311, s. 1, eff. Sept. 26, 1968; L.1983, c. 376, s. 1, eff. Nov. 10, 1983.