South Carolina Workers’ Comp Class Codes for Roofing, Electrical and Plumbing Contractors (5551, 5190, 5183)
Quick answer: South Carolina class codes for roofing, electrical and plumbing
South Carolina 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. NCCI filed a 0.4% voluntary-market loss cost decrease effective April 1, 2026. 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 South Carolina — 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 South Carolina 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 South Carolina 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 South Carolina contractor cannot buy its way into a cheaper code by raising wages. What moves the premium here is the experience mod, the carrier’s loss cost multiplier and schedule credits, and — for roofing especially — whether the account is in the voluntary market or the residual market at all.
What moves a South Carolina contractor’s rate
NCCI filed a 0.4% decrease to South Carolina voluntary-market loss costs for policies effective April 1, 2026 — essentially flat after several years of larger cuts. Source: NCCI South Carolina State Advisory Forum filing summary, 2025.
The loss cost multiplier. Each carrier files its own multiplier over the advisory loss cost; on the same roofing account the spread between carriers can exceed the entire statewide change.
The experience mod. NCCI experience rating applies in South Carolina. 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.
Who has to carry coverage in South Carolina
South Carolina requires workers’ compensation once an employer regularly has four or more employees, counting part-time and family members. Below four the coverage is voluntary — but a roofing, electrical or plumbing contractor with three W-2 employees and a rotating bench of 1099 helpers is usually over four in the auditor’s count, not under it.
Under South Carolina’s statutory-employer rule, a general contractor is liable for the injuries of an uninsured subcontractor’s employees — and the sub’s payroll is picked up on the GC’s audit unless the GC holds a certificate of insurance for the term. For roofing subs in particular, GCs in the Upstate and along the I-77 corridor now check certificates before the crew is allowed on the roof.
The residual market
South Carolina’s residual market is the NCCI-administered assigned risk pool. It will take a roofer nobody else will, at pool rates and with a surcharge, and it is where a high-mod contractor lands by default. A voluntary specialty placement almost always beats it — the pool is the floor, not the plan.
Placing South Carolina roofing, electrical and plumbing accounts
Standard markets in South Carolina 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.
CPR Business Solutions is based in Lake Wylie, South Carolina, twenty minutes from Charlotte, and writes the Carolinas as its home market. See our Lake Wylie and Charlotte-metro pages for the local placement picture.
South Carolina class code FAQ
What is the workers' comp class code for roofing in South Carolina?
5551 — Roofing, All Kinds and Drivers. South Carolina 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 South Carolina?
5190 — Electrical Wiring Within Buildings and Drivers. Same number as California’s low-wage electrical code, but in South Carolina it covers electricians at every wage; California’s high-wage 5140 does not exist here.
What is the class code for plumbers in South Carolina?
5183 — Plumbing NOC and Drivers. Again the same number as California’s low-wage plumbing code, but with no wage split in South Carolina. HVAC installation and sheet metal work are separately classified.
Does South Carolina have a dual-wage class code split like California?
No. South Carolina uses NCCI classifications, and NCCI has no wage-based split in roofing, electrical or plumbing. A South Carolina roofer is 5551 at every wage; an electrician is 5190; a plumber is 5183. The California pairs — 5552/5553, 5190/5140, 5183/5187 — do not exist here, even where the code number is the same.
Can you place a South Carolina roofer or electrician with a high experience mod?
Yes. CPR Business Solutions specializes in high-mod and hard-to-place workers’ comp in South Carolina and nationally — roofing 5551 with a mod above 1.50, an electrician non-renewed after an audit, a plumber coming off the assigned risk pool. 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 South Carolina 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.
