Mid-term workers comp payroll change request

Published 16 October 2026. Updated 16 October 2026.

A client writes: "We hired a carpentry crew, put us down for about $60,000 in payroll." Is that the new total, or the increase on top of what the policy already shows? Is it for one class or spread across the business? From what date? A payroll email looks simple and hides three questions, and a carrier request built on a guess can leave the client over- or under-reported until the policy audit.

This guide is for agency account managers and CSRs handling a mid-term payroll change on a workers compensation policy. It does not give advice on rating or classification; those belong to the carrier and the policy. It shows how to turn a vague email into a request the carrier can act on.

Why payroll changes are different from a vehicle or a location

Workers compensation premium is generally based on estimated payroll by classification for the policy term, and the final premium is typically settled when the carrier audits actual payroll after the term ends. Because of that, practice varies on a mid-term change:

• Some carriers will endorse the policy to change estimated payroll.
• Some leave the estimate alone and settle the difference at audit.
• Some ask for an endorsement only for a significant change or when a new kind of work appears.

Nothing here replaces the policy and the carrier's own rules. The first useful question for any payroll change is: does this carrier endorse a mid-term payroll change, or is it handled at audit? Ask once, write down the answer, and apply it to the next one.

The questions behind one payroll sentence

Before you contact the carrier, settle these with the client.

1. Total or increase. A frequent error. "Payroll is up $60,000" reads as an increase and "Payroll will be $240,000" as a total, but many emails say neither: "put us down for $60,000" could be either. If the declarations page shows $180,000 and the client says $60,000, you need to know which one they mean. Reply with both numbers and ask.
2. Which class. Payroll is scheduled by classification. A new carpentry crew may fit a carpentry class already on the policy, or may need a class the policy does not have yet; the carrier decides. Ask what the employees actually do day to day.
3. Effective date. The date the new payroll starts, as a calendar date. If the client gives none, ask. Do not use the date of the email.
4. Who is included. Employees only, or officers and owners too? Practice on owners and officers varies by state and by policy, so say what the client told you and check with the carrier.
5. One-off or lasting. A seasonal crew for three months is not the same as a permanent hire. Say which, so the carrier can decide how to treat it.

Check the email against the declarations page

Put the email next to the policy's payroll schedule and compare line by line.

• Does the class already exist on the policy? If yes, the change is a number. If no, it is a new classification and the carrier needs a description of the work.
• What is the current payroll in that class? You will need it to write a clear request, and it is the number that makes a total-versus-increase question visible.
• Is the client's figure plausible against the schedule? A "total" that is far below the current payroll, or an "increase" larger than the whole schedule, deserves another question to the client.

Write down what does not fit and ask the client. Do not resolve it yourself.

Write the request

A good payroll request names the policy, the class, the amount and the date, and says whether the amount is a total or an increase.

• Subject: insured name, policy number, payroll change.
• First line: "Please update the estimated payroll for class [class] on policy [number], effective [date], from [current] to [new total]." If the client only supplied an increase, say so: "The client reports an increase of [amount]."
• New class: if a new classification is involved, describe the work in the client's words and ask the carrier which class applies.
• The question: ask in the same email whether the carrier endorses a mid-term payroll change or settles it at the audit. If the answer is the audit, tell the client what that means for them: nothing changes on the policy now, and the difference is dealt with later.

Tell the client what to expect. A payroll change can raise or lower the premium, and the carrier's answer, not your email, says by how much.

Common mistakes

How EndorseDesk does this step

EndorseDesk handles payroll changes as one of the change types in a change-request email. It reads the email into a fixed set of fields (class, amount, whether the amount is a total or an increase, effective date), with the line of the email behind every value. If you upload the declarations page, code matches the class to a payroll row there, by the same four-digit class code or the same class description, and flags a class with no matching row.

When the email does not say whether the figure is the new total or only the increase, the amount is flagged, together with the payroll the declarations page shows for that class, so you can ask the client. When the email gives no day and month, the date is listed as missing and is never guessed; a day and month without a year takes its year from the policy period only when that period leaves no doubt, and is otherwise marked to confirm. Every payroll change also gets an item reminding you to ask the carrier whether a mid-term payroll change is endorsed or adjusted at the policy audit. The carrier email and the field sheet come out in one zip, and every item to check is listed first.

A second, stronger AI model reviews every result and lists what is left for you to decide; the drafting model corrects the serious problems the review finds, and code checks every correction. Results are not verified by a person. EndorseDesk sends nothing for you. Compare it with the vehicle guide if the same email also adds a vehicle, and sign up to try a request.

Questions

Should a payroll change be sent to the carrier mid-term at all?

It depends on the carrier and the policy. Some carriers endorse a change in estimated payroll, others settle the difference at the policy audit. Ask the carrier which it prefers and keep the answer in the file.

What if a client adds a crew that does a different kind of work?

Treat it as a new classification, not as more payroll in an existing one. Describe the work in the client's own words and ask the carrier which class applies. Do not choose a class code from a job title.

How do I avoid confusing a total with an increase?

Put both numbers in your reply to the client: the payroll on the declarations page now and the figure you think they mean. Ask them to confirm which is the new total.