The California Insurance Guarantee Association (also known as "CIGA") was created under California law to provide a limited fund for the payment of some, but not all, workers' compensation claims of injured workers within the coverage of policies issued by California admitted insurers that have been declared insolvent and ordered into liquidation by a California court or a court in the state in which the insurer is domiciled. CIGA is authorized to pay and discharge only certain "covered claims" as that term is defined under California Insurance Code Sections §1063.1 and §1063.2. The "covered claims" that CIGA is authorized to pay may be more limited and/or restricted than the coverage that would have been afforded under the policy issued by the insolvent and liquidated insurer. To qualify as a "covered claim" for CIGA, the claim must satisfy all the requirements set forth in California Insurance Code Sections §1063.1 and §1063.2, including the requirements that the claim must be presented to the Liquidator in this state, if any, or to CIGA on or before the last date fixed for the filing of claims in the domiciliary liquidation proceeding.
CIGA claim professionals are uniquely trained and qualified in administering workers' compensation benefits in accordance with CIGA's statutory obligations in conjunction with its third party administrators. CIGA is dedicated to providing quality medical care through its Medical Provider Network (MPN) and Pharmacy Program. Understanding the inconvenience and often hardship resulting from an insurer's liquidation, CIGA strives to provide timely and appropriate benefits to injured workers.
Additionally, CIGA's claim staff is trained in identifying suspected workers' compensation fraud and through its Special Investigation Unit (SIU) partner reports cases of suspected fraud to the California Department of Insurance Fraud Division and district attorneys throughout the State of California.
If you are an injured worker and your claim appears in the insurer's records, CIGA will have notice of your claim and there is no need to file it again. Some delays may occur since CIGA must obtain the claims files from the Liquidator of the insolvent insurer and then have time to review those claims. CIGA makes every effort to quickly identify and expedite the handling of all claims. CIGA will endeavor to contact each injured worker with an open claim on file with the insolvent insurer as soon as possible by mailing out letters detailing the injured worker's rights under the Guarantee Act and let that person know who will be handling his or her claim. If you do not hear from CIGA within a month from the date the company was liquidated, please contact CIGA at your convenience. However, CIGA will be unable to provide specific information about your claim or to make any payments until CIGA has received your claim from the Liquidator.
If you are an employer with insurance coverage for the claim or lawsuit with an insolvent insurer, you should immediately contact CIGA and send a copy of the claim and/or lawsuit to our office at the address listed below. In addition, most Liquidators require that they also be notified of any new claim or lawsuit. Please note that the claims for statutory workers' compensation benefits do not have a deadline for filing a claim with CIGA. However, the claim must have been timely filed in accordance with the procedures of the California Workers' Compensation Act.
California Insurance Guarantee Association P.O. Box 29066 Glendale, CA 91209-9066
In the alternative, you may notifiy CIGA by submitting sufficient information, including policy and claim related documentation as email attachments to: