Workers' Comp Rates for Roofing - All Employees (Class Code 5551)
Last verified: 2026-06-02 · Reviewed against NCCI and state rating-bureau filings — how we verify
Description
Covers all employees of roofing companies including helpers, laborers, and skilled roofers.
Common Businesses
Hazard Group
G
Filed Figures Published
1
state · class percentile 99
Filed Figures for Class Code 5551 in the States That Publish Them
Copied from each state's own regulator or rating bureau filing, per $100 of payroll. A loss cost is what the filing calls it — your insurer multiplies it by its own loss cost multiplier; a rate is a manual rate. States not listed publish no per-class figure this site has transcribed.
Judged only from filed tables, code 5551 has a class percentile of 99 (0 = the cheapest class, 100 = the most expensive) across the 1 filing that list it.
How States Rank for Class Code 5551
Cost index 1.00 = the median of the 47 rated states. It is a relative position from this site’s model, not a price, and it does not vary by class code; a state’s filed figure, where it publishes one, is shown beside it. North Dakota, Ohio, Washington and Wyoming are not included. Each is a monopolistic state fund that sets premium on its own basis rather than on an NCCI class-code rate per $100 of payroll, so there is no comparable figure to average or rank.
| State | Cost index | Filed figure | Filing effective |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indiana | 0.73 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| Texas | 0.74 | — | 2026-07-01 |
| Virginia | 0.78 | — | 2026-04-01 |
| Utah | 0.79 | — | 2026-02-01 |
| Arkansas | 0.82 | — | 2026-07-01 |
| Colorado | 0.83 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| South Dakota | 0.83 | — | 2026-07-01 |
| Arizona | 0.86 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| Nebraska | 0.88 | — | 2026-02-01 |
| North Carolina | 0.88 | — | 2026-04-01 |
| Idaho | 0.89 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| Tennessee | 0.89 | — | 2026-10-01 |
| Kansas | 0.90 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| Mississippi | 0.91 | — | 2026-03-01 |
| New Mexico | 0.92 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| Kentucky | 0.93 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| South Carolina | 0.93 | — | 2026-04-01 |
| Iowa | 0.95 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| Missouri | 0.96 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| Nevada | 0.97 | — | 2026-03-01 |
| Georgia | 0.98 | — | 2026-03-01 |
| Maryland | 0.98 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| Oregon | 0.99 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| West Virginia | 1.00 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| Alabama | 1.01 | — | 2026-03-01 |
| Minnesota | 1.01 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| New Hampshire | 1.01 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| Wisconsin | 1.01 | $12.789 rate | 2026-10-01 |
| Delaware | 1.03 | — | 2025-12-01 |
| Maine | 1.03 | — | 2025-04-01 |
| Rhode Island | 1.04 | — | 2026-08-01 |
| Michigan | 1.05 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| Vermont | 1.05 | — | 2026-04-01 |
| New York | 1.06 | — | 2026-10-01 |
| Florida | 1.07 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| Montana | 1.07 | — | 2026-07-01 |
| District of Columbia | 1.10 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| Massachusetts | 1.10 | — | 2024-07-01 |
| Oklahoma | 1.10 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| Illinois | 1.12 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| Connecticut | 1.14 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| Louisiana | 1.17 | — | 2026-05-01 |
| Hawaii | 1.20 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| Pennsylvania | 1.20 | — | 2026-04-01 |
| New Jersey | 1.21 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| Alaska | 1.33 | — | 2026-01-01 |
| California | 1.34 | — | 2026-09-01 |
A filed rate — or a loss cost times your insurer's multiplier — is step 1 of the eight-step rating-bureau premium algorithm. See what your carrier applies after that, or work out premium for code 5551 with your own rate, payroll and experience mod.
Related Class Codes
About Class Code 5551: Scope, Inclusions, and Common Misclassifications
NCCI Class Code 5551 — officially "Roofing — All Kinds & Drivers" — is the workers' compensation classification for roofing contractors. It applies to roofing of every type, whether the roof is flat, sloped, or built-up, and covers new roof installation as well as repair and replacement work. The classification includes the drivers who transport crews and materials, and the NCCI scope also picks up the pressure washing of roofs. It is one of the highest-rated common construction codes because of severe fall exposure: workers operate at height, on pitched and slippery surfaces, and around roof edges and openings.
5551 is an "all employees" roofing code — the laborers, skilled roofers, and drivers who make up a roofing crew are generally reported together under this single classification rather than split by job title, which is why the site labels it "Roofing — All Employees." Because of the fall hazard it sits in a high hazard group and typically carries a base rate several times higher than light-construction trades and an order of magnitude above clerical codes. This page shows filed 5551 figures for the states that publish them and ranks the other states with a relative cost index, so a roofing contractor can see where its state sits before requesting a quote, and explains where the classification boundary falls.
What's Included Under Class Code 5551
5551 contemplates all kinds of roofing work — built-up, flat, sloped, shingle, membrane, metal, and tile roofing — performed by a roofing contractor, including both new installation and the repair or replacement of existing roofs. Drivers transporting the crew and materials to the job site are included in the classification, which is why the title ends in "& Drivers," and the NCCI scope also brings in the pressure washing of roofs. The classification reflects the dominant exposure of the trade: working at height on roof surfaces.
As with all contractor codes, 5551 is assigned from the operations actually performed during the policy year rather than from the contractor's license category, and it is the governing classification for a dedicated roofing operation. Because roofing is a high-severity exposure, carriers scrutinize fall-protection practices, and the experience modification factor on a roofing account can swing the premium dramatically — a clean loss history is one of the few levers a roofer has against the high base rate.
When Roofing Work Is NOT Coded 5551
The common boundary issues involve adjacent sheet-metal and structural work. Architectural and ornamental sheet-metal work, gutter and downspout installation done as a standalone sheet-metal operation, and the installation of skylights or HVAC equipment on a roof can fall under their own classifications rather than 5551, depending on the scope language and whether the work is a standalone operation or incidental to a roofing job. Spray or foam roofing and certain specialty membrane systems may also have classification nuances, so payroll should be tracked by operation when a contractor's work spans more than straight roofing.
Independent-bureau states are important for 5551. California (WCIRB), Pennsylvania (PCRB), Delaware (DCRB), New Jersey (NJCRIB), Michigan (CAOM), and North Carolina (NCRB) run their own rating bureaus and may use different roofing code numbers, phraseology, or separation rules than NCCI's 5551 — California in particular does not use the national 5551 number, so a California roofing contractor should check WCIRB's classification system rather than relying on the national comparison on this page.
Sources
- GeneralLiabilityInsure — NCCI Class Code 5551 Roofing — All Kinds & Drivers (flat/sloped/built-up roofing, new and repair, drivers, pressure washing) (retrieved 2026-06-02)
- Class Codes — Workers Compensation Code 5551 Roofing — All Kinds & Drivers (scope and classification guidance) (retrieved 2026-06-02)
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is workers' comp class code 5551?
- Class code 5551 is "Roofing — All Kinds & Drivers," the NCCI classification for roofing contractors. It covers all kinds of roofing — flat, sloped, and built-up — including new installation, repair, and replacement, plus the drivers who transport the crew and materials and the pressure washing of roofs. It is one of the highest-rated common construction codes because of severe fall exposure, and it groups a roofing crew's laborers, skilled roofers, and drivers under one classification.
- How much is workers' comp insurance for class code 5551?
- It depends on the state, and only some states publish a per-class figure. For class code 5551, the filed figures per $100 of payroll are: Wisconsin $12.789 (rate, WCRB, effective 2026-10-01). A loss cost is not a rate — your insurer multiplies it by its own loss cost multiplier — and every figure is before your experience modification. For other states this site shows a relative cost index, not a dollar figure. North Dakota, Ohio, Washington and Wyoming are not included. Each is a monopolistic state fund that sets premium on its own basis rather than on an NCCI class-code rate per $100 of payroll, so there is no comparable figure to average or rank.
- What businesses use workers' comp class code 5551?
- Class code 5551 typically applies to Roofing companies, Residential roofers, Commercial roofing firms, Roof maintenance services, Flat roof specialists.
- Why is class code 5551 so expensive?
- Roofing carries one of the highest base rates of any common construction class because falls from roofs are frequent and severe. Workers operate at height on pitched, slippery, or fragile surfaces near edges and openings, so both claim frequency and claim severity are elevated. That places 5551 in a high hazard group with a base rate several times that of light-construction trades. The largest lever a roofing contractor controls is the experience modification factor — a strong fall-protection program and a clean loss history can meaningfully reduce premium even though the base rate stays high.
- Does class code 5551 include drivers?
- Yes. The full NCCI title is "Roofing — All Kinds & Drivers," so the drivers who transport the roofing crew and materials to and from job sites are included in the 5551 classification rather than reported under a separate drivers code. The scope also includes the pressure washing of roofs. Adjacent operations such as standalone architectural sheet-metal work may break out to their own codes depending on whether they are incidental to the roofing job or a separate operation.
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