Florida Workers’ Comp Class Codes for Roofing, Electrical and Plumbing Contractors (5551, 5190, 5183)
Quick answer: Florida class codes for roofing, electrical and plumbing
Florida uses NCCI classifications. Roofing is 5551 (Roofing — All Kinds and Drivers), electrical is 5190 (Electrical Wiring — Within Buildings and Drivers), and plumbing is 5183 (Plumbing NOC and Drivers). None of the three has a wage-based split — unlike California, one code applies at every wage. OIR approved a 6.9% average rate decrease effective January 1, 2026, the ninth straight cut. Verified September 7, 2026 by CPR Business Solutions.
Will we write it? Tell us the operation, the state, and roughly where the mod sits — we’ll come back within one business day with a straight answer: yes, no, or what we’d need to see. No ACORD, no loss runs, no obligation. Agents and business owners both welcome. Run it past us here.
The three codes and what sits inside them
5551 — Roofing, All Kinds and Drivers. Every kind of roofing — shingle, tile, metal, built-up, single-ply, residential and commercial — plus the drivers. Sheet metal roofing installed by a sheet metal contractor and gutter work can fall elsewhere, but for a roofing contractor, the whole crew is 5551.
5190 — Electrical Wiring Within Buildings and Drivers. Interior wiring, panels, fixtures, low-voltage and data when done by the same electrical contractor, plus drivers. Outside line work and utility construction are separately classified.
5183 — Plumbing NOC and Drivers. Plumbing not otherwise classified — residential and commercial rough-in, fixtures, water heaters, repair and service — plus drivers. HVAC equipment, ductwork and automatic sprinkler installation carry their own codes.
No dual-wage split in Florida — and the same numbers mean different things
Agents who work California accounts know 5190 and 5183 as the low-wage half of a pair — 5190/5140 for electrical, 5183/5187 for plumbing — with a $40.00 and $35.00 hourly threshold deciding which code an employee sits in. In Florida there is no threshold and no pair. 5190 is every electrician; 5183 is every plumber. Roofing is the reverse trap: California has no 5551 at all — its roofing pair is 5552/5553 — so a multi-state roofer is reported in 5551 for its Florida payroll and in 5552 or 5553 for its California payroll. The California class code lookup table has all sixteen California pairs for comparison.
The practical consequence is that a Florida contractor cannot buy its way into a cheaper code by raising wages. What moves the premium here is the experience mod, schedule credits, and — for roofing especially — whether the account is in the voluntary market or the residual market at all.
What moves a Florida contractor’s rate
Florida is an administered-pricing state: the Office of Insurance Regulation approves one set of NCCI rates that every carrier must use, so there is no loss cost multiplier to shop. OIR approved a 6.9% average rate decrease for policies effective January 1, 2026 — the ninth consecutive annual decrease. Individual classes moved above and below that average.
The experience mod. NCCI experience rating applies in Florida. A 1.50 mod on 5551 payroll is the difference between a placeable account and a residual-market one. See placing workers’ comp with a high X-Mod.
Schedule and program credits. Documented fall protection for roofers, drug-free workplace programs and safety credentials all carry weight with the specialty carriers that actually write these classes.
Market, not rate. For roofing in particular, the question is rarely which carrier is cheapest — it is which carrier will write it at all.
Who has to carry coverage in Florida
Florida requires coverage for any construction-industry employer with one or more employees — including the owner, unless a valid exemption is on file — while non-construction employers are required at four. Roofing, electrical and plumbing are construction classes, so a one-man shop with a single helper is in.
A Florida contractor that hires an uninsured sub is liable for that sub’s injured workers and picks up the sub’s payroll at audit unless the sub holds its own coverage or a valid exemption. Officer exemptions are the Florida wrinkle: up to three corporate officers or LLC members in a construction business can exempt themselves, and a GC checking certificates needs to check exemption status on the state database too, not just the COI.
The residual market
Florida’s residual market is a statutory insurer of last resort that writes what the voluntary market declines, at rates above the approved voluntary rates and with strict eligibility and payment terms. Roofing is its single most common construction class. Because voluntary rates are uniform across carriers in Florida, the entire game is staying in the voluntary market — a specialty carrier’s appetite, not its rate, is what you are shopping for.
Placing Florida roofing, electrical and plumbing accounts
Standard markets in Florida write clean electricians and plumbers all day. What they decline is roofing with any loss history, any of the three classes with a mod above about 1.30, accounts coming off the residual market, and anyone non-renewed after an audit dispute. Those are the accounts CPR places — through specialty admitted carriers, PEO co-employment where it fits, and programs built for high-hazard construction.
See our Florida specialty markets guide for the PEO, captive and drug-free-workplace levers that matter more in Florida than anywhere else.
Florida class code FAQ
What is the workers' comp class code for roofing in Florida?
5551 — Roofing, All Kinds and Drivers. Florida uses the NCCI classification system, and 5551 covers every kind of roofing at every wage level; there is no separate high-wage roofing code. It is consistently the most expensive construction classification in the state.
What is the class code for electricians in Florida?
5190 — Electrical Wiring Within Buildings and Drivers. Same number as California’s low-wage electrical code, but in Florida it covers electricians at every wage; California’s high-wage 5140 does not exist here.
What is the class code for plumbers in Florida?
5183 — Plumbing NOC and Drivers. Again the same number as California’s low-wage plumbing code, but with no wage split in Florida. HVAC installation and sheet metal work are separately classified.
Are Florida workers' comp rates the same at every carrier?
Yes. Florida is an administered-pricing state — OIR approves one NCCI rate for each class code and every carrier charges it. What differs between carriers is appetite, schedule credits, dividend plans and whether they will write the account at all. That is why Florida placement is about getting into the voluntary market, not about shopping a rate.
Can you place a Florida roofer or electrician with a high experience mod?
Yes. CPR Business Solutions specializes in high-mod and hard-to-place workers’ comp in Florida and nationally — roofing 5551 with a mod above 1.50, an electrician non-renewed after an audit, a plumber coming off the residual market. Send the operation, the mod and the loss runs and we will tell you within a business day whether we can write it.
Send us the account
CPR Business Solutions is a wholesale workers’ compensation broker and MGA built around high-mod and hard-to-place accounts. If a Florida roofer, electrician or plumber has a mod above 1.50, has been non-renewed, or is sitting in the residual market, that is the account we want.
Call 714-928-3858 or email proposals@cprbrokers.com.
