PEO Insurance

Gillespie Insurance Services is your partner for PEO solutions. We work with a variety of Professional Employer Organizations (PEOs) to find the perfect fit for your business. Whether you’re considering joining a PEO or simply want to learn more, we’re here to guide you through the process. Our services include PEO selection, enrollment, and ongoing support. Let us handle the complexities of HR and benefits administration, so you can focus on growing your business.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a PEO?

It is a Professional Employer Organization. A PEO is a company that can handle a variety of your company’s HR duties such as payroll, tax filing, and retirement benefits. A PEO can also include a variety of your company’s insurance policies like workers comp, health benefits and employment practices liability.

How does a PEO work?

Your company enters into an agreement with the PEO designating the PEO as either a co-employer or the employer of record which authorizes them to handle the services that your company signed up for.

What is the difference between a Co-Employer and an Employer of Record?

A Co-Employer is the arrangement where the PEO is authorized to act on behalf of your company. An Employer of Record is where the PEO actually assumes ownership of your employees. You, the company, leased your employees back from the PEO. In both situations, you maintain control of your employees.

What kind of services does a PEO provide?

Typically, at a minimum, a PEO will process your:

• Payroll
• Payroll taxes

It will also do HR management such as:

• Creating employee applications and employee handbooks
• Writing up and issuing written warnings, disciplinary notices and termination assistance,
• Processing government and compliance forms like I-9s, W-4s, Unemployment, ADA, and DOL.

Usually, the PEO offers an insurance component. When you sign up with the PEO, your employees can be covered the PEO’s master insurance plans such as:

• Workers Comp
• Group Health
• Employment Practices Liability

Enrollment into the insurance policy may be optional or mandatory, depending on the PEO you’re signing up with.

What are the advantages of using a PEO?

1. A PEO reduces complexity in your company’s operations. As new labor laws get passed more frequently, wage requirements, notification requirements, and every other requirement falls upon you to learn, handle, process, advise. The HR part of your business can consume so much time that you feel like your primary function as business owner is staying on top of the ever-changing rules. And how about turnover? How much time did it take you to train your last administrative assistant? How much time do you want spend training your next administrative assistant? And what new rules have you needed to learn before then?
2. A PEO can reduce your own payroll. When you use a PEO, you don’t have to pay wages to someone in-house to process all these things for you.
3. A PEO can save money. This happens primarily on the insurance: workers comp and benefits. Regarding workers comp, PEOs tend to prefer the higher risk classes of business, you know the businesses that have employees out there actually doing physical things where injuries could occur. I’m talking about contractors, manufacturers, agribusiness. When you have a high base rate, the PEO wants you. Regarding benefits, the answer is more concrete: because they can apply large group rates to a small business. It’s that simple. Rates are higher for small groups (under 50 employees) and lower for large groups (50 or more). When you go with the PEO, you automatically get large group rates. Take that big business.
4. A PEO can be an advantage is for job costing. This applies to businesses that base their projects in part on what their payroll for that job will be. With a PEO, you have a rate that applies to taxes, benefits, and workers comp, so when you are estimating a payroll for a project, you get a consistent, accurate rate to multiply on top of your payroll to show you your true cost. Low bids will get you the job, but if you underestimated your costs, you’re truly giving away money. Accurate bids keep you in business and PEOs help you get accurate bids.

What type of business is a good fit for a PEO?

Small business in any industry that want to provide group health: the health savings alone could save you tens of thousands of dollars, regardless of what industry you are in.

Businesses that would like to reduce costs and time in training of HR personnel, and dealing with increasing rules and regulation: when you delegate these duties to the PEO, you don’t have to manage, train, educate, and pay as much for your staff. You can keep your eye on the things that matter to you – sales, marketing, growth – basically, your business!

Businesses with a high workers comp rate: PEOs always excel in the heavy duty work comp classes like construction, restaurants, farms, manufacturing, and trucking. When you have a high rate, whether because of your industry or your claims experience, you are a prime target for savings in a PEO.

Businesses with a high workers comp Xmod: PEOs excel with those businesses that have had a surge in claims. PEOs are willing to assume higher levels of risk than standard workers comp carriers and help you mitigate against future claims with their loss control and safety services, which are typically included without extra cost, which then brings your Xmod mod and overall cost down.

Businesses that bid jobs based on the estimated payroll for that job: Contractors, manufacturers, agribusiness, as well as any businesses that provide custom services or products, benefit greatly by the predictable and accurate cost of your labor.

Businesses that would like to eliminate annual workers comp audits: there is no more audit because your workers comp IS your payroll company. It is the same entity. You no longer have to gather data from payroll company and try to make sense of it. No more filling out forms asking you about 1099s, subcontractors, class codes. You no longer have to wonder how tips, bonuses, and overtime pay specifically need to be reported and hope that your audit doesn’t come back with a big invoice.

What type of insurance problems does a PEO solve?

Regarding Workers Comp, a PEO can solve a lot of problems.

• High Xmods. An Employer of Record arrangement will eliminate your Xmod. This is because your employees are no longer yours. They are the PEO’s and subject to the PEO’s characteristics.
• Lack of availability due to lapses in coverage, high losses, and/or high hazard occupation. Often times, a business may have a hard time finding workers comp coverage due to the aforementioned characteristics. Since the PEO manages more of your business, they aren’t underwriting based on one aspect of your business (workers comp). They are also handling your health and payroll, which isn’t as “high risk” as your workers comp. Therefore, it’s a good bet for the PEO and a winning plan for the business.
• Cancellations due to non-cooperative audits. When a business doesn’t complete its workers comp audits, it repels other workers comp carriers from wanting to insure it. With a PEO, there is no audit, so the PEO doesn’t have to worry about a lack of compliance in this department.

Regarding Group Health, a PEO can solve a lot of problems.

• Rates. Small businesses get small group rates, which are higher. Big businesses (50 employees and up) automatically get a better rate. When you sign on through a PEO, businesses of any size get the large group rates.
• Plan availability and coverage options. Small groups are often limited in the plans and coverage options available to them. With a PEO, businesses of any size get the wide variety of options available to them.

Want to look into partnering with a PEO?

If you’re wondering if a PEO might be right for you, or simply want to know more, please click on the “Request a Quote” button below. Our process is simple:

1. Set an appointment. Just click on the button below!
2. Have a conversation. We’ll learn about you and your business, gathering all the information the PEO needs to offer a quote.
3. Present your plan. Once we’ve received your custom offer from the PEO, we’ll reach out to you and schedule a time to discuss and review your no-pressure potential PEO solution.