California Security Guard Workers' Comp: Class 7721(2), the 2026 Rate and Placement
California puts security guards in WCIRB class 7721(2), Security Guard or Patrol Services, and the code is the same whether the guard is armed or not. For policies effective September 1, 2026, the WCIRB's approved advisory pure premium rate for 7721(2) is $4.805 per $100 of payroll, up from $4.090 a year earlier and $3.380 in 2024. That is a 42.2% increase in two years, against statewide average increases of 8.7% and 6.6% over the same two renewals. For a California guard company the code itself is rarely in dispute. What moves the premium is the rate trend, how payroll is reported and what the loss run shows.
Which class code California uses for security guards
The WCIRB's footnote for 7721(2) applies the class to employers that contract with others to provide guard or patrol services for access control, security, public safety or loss prevention. Its examples of locations include shopping malls, office buildings, retail stores, apartment complexes, hospitals, hotels, gated communities, sporting events, public roadways and parties. The personnel it names are security guards, bodyguards, street crossing guards, loss prevention agents, and gate, lobby and door attendants. It also says they may or may not be armed or in uniform. Armed work therefore does not move a guard into a different California code. It is an underwriting factor, not a classification one.
That footnote speaks to employers that contract to provide guard services. A business that employs its own guards, such as a hospital with an in-house security team, may be classified under its own business rather than 7721(2). Confirm with the carrier or the WCIRB before assuming either answer.
The neighboring codes: detectives and armored transport
Two nearby codes matter at the edges of a guard company. Class 7721(1), Detective or Private Investigative Agencies, covers investigators and detectives retained by clients to look into matters such as backgrounds, disputes, theft, embezzlement and fraud, work that involves surveillance of people without their knowledge. It also covers asset repossession and airport baggage inspection done on a contract basis. Its 2026 rate is the same $4.805 as 7721(2), so for now the split between the two changes the label more than the premium.
Class 7198(2), Armored Transport Services, covers the secure transport of cash and valuables in armored vehicles, including the drivers, money counters, vault clerks and guards tied to that work. Its 2026 rate is $10.620, about 2.2 times the guard rate. The WCIRB footnote says guards who are not connected to armored transport belong in 7721(2), so armored work added to a guard contract can put part of the payroll in 7198(2).
What the 2026 rate means in dollars
Take a guard company with $2,000,000 of annual payroll. At the 7721(2) advisory pure premium rate of $4.805 per $100, premium before the experience mod is $96,100. At the 2024 rate of $3.380 the same payroll would have produced $67,600, a difference of $28,500. A 1.20 mod on the 2026 figure gives $115,320, and a 0.85 mod gives $81,685. These use the advisory rate, not a carrier's filed rate, so a real quote will differ.
The WCIRB rates are advisory. California is an open rating state, so insurers are not bound by them and file their own rates. Treat the advisory rate as a benchmark, not a quote. The direction is still clear: 7721(2) rose 21.0% on September 1, 2025 and 17.5% on September 1, 2026, each time well above the statewide average increase. Our guide to the September 2026 experience rating changes covers what moved alongside the rate.
Payroll rules that change a guard company's audit
If your guards work overtime, the overtime rule matters. Under the WCIRB's rules the straight-time portion of overtime is payroll. The premium portion, the extra paid above the regular rate, is excluded only if your records show it separately by employee and in summary by type of operation. Without those records the carrier can count the full overtime payment. A uniform allowance and tips are not payroll. If you pay a uniform allowance, make sure it is coded as an allowance in your payroll system so it does not show up as wages.
Workers' comp payroll also differs from tax payroll, so the audit figure will not match a W-2 total line for line. Keep time records and payroll registers that let you show the difference, and if an audit already went wrong, see our guide to premium audit disputes.
Workplace violence plans and cumulative trauma
Cal/OSHA says Labor Code section 6401.9 applies to all California employers except those the statute lists, and that its requirements have been enforceable since July 1, 2024. In practice that means a written workplace violence prevention plan, a violent incident log and employee training. A guard company should keep all three current and in one place, because they show how violence exposure is managed. Check the statute's exemptions against your own operation before relying on one.
Cumulative trauma claims, which build up from repeated work activity rather than a single event, are the other California-specific item to understand. Our guide to California cumulative trauma claims explains how they work and why regulators have pointed to them as a cost driver.
How CPR places California guard accounts
CPR is a wholesale workers' comp broker and MGA, best known for hard-to-place accounts. A California guard company with a manageable loss history is welcome too, and we work with guard company owners directly and with the retail agents who place them. We handle California placements from Los Angeles to the Central Valley.
A complete file moves fastest. Send a signed ACORD 130, currently valued loss runs for the last several years, payroll by class code with overtime premium shown separately, your current experience modification worksheet from the WCIRB, headcount and turnover, a roster of guard card numbers and expiration dates, and a summary of your training and workplace violence prevention plan. If the mod is high or the account was declined, send it anyway. A high mod changes the placement. It does not end the conversation. Our guide to high-mod placement covers that route, and our guide to guard companies with a clean loss run covers the other.
Will we write it? Tell us the operation and roughly where the mod sits, and we will come back within one business day with a straight answer: yes, no, or what we would need to see. Run it past us here.
Frequently Asked Questions
What workers' comp class code do security guards use in California?
Class 7721(2), Security Guard or Patrol Services. Detectives and private investigators fall in 7721(1), and armored transport falls in 7198(2). Your insurer assigns the code on the policy, and the WCIRB can review a classification dispute.
Is there a separate California class code for armed security guards?
No. The WCIRB footnote for 7721(2) says security or patrol personnel may or may not be armed or in uniform. Armed exposure affects underwriting appetite, pricing and documentation, not the classification.
What is the 2026 workers' comp rate for security guards in California?
The WCIRB's approved advisory pure premium rate for 7721(2) is $4.805 per $100 of payroll for policies effective September 1, 2026, up from $4.090 in 2025 and $3.380 in 2024. Insurers file their own rates, so a quote will differ from the advisory rate.
Are overtime premium pay and uniform allowances included in guard payroll?
The straight-time portion of overtime is payroll. The premium portion is excluded only when records show it separately by employee and by type of operation. A uniform allowance and tips are not payroll.
Does a California guard company need a workplace violence prevention plan?
Cal/OSHA says Labor Code section 6401.9 applies to all employers except those listed in the statute, and that it has been enforceable since July 1, 2024. It requires a written plan, a violent incident log and training. Check the statute's exemptions against your operation.
Can a California guard company with a high mod still get coverage?
It depends on the loss history and the payroll, but a high mod does not by itself end the conversation. CPR specializes in accounts with high mods, declined renewals and lapses, including guard companies, and writes in California. Send the loss runs and payroll by class and we will tell you what is possible.
For more California detail, see our California class code lookup and our guide to DIR surcharges. The national picture is in our security guard workers' comp guide. Call 714-928-3858 or email proposals@cprbrokers.com to discuss a specific guard account.
