South Carolina Electrical Workers Comp Rates (2026)
South Carolina does not publish its electrical class figures online. Across the 26 states that do, the median typical premium is about $1.90 per $100 of payroll. Ask a carrier or the state's rating bureau for the current South Carolina figure.
No official South Carolina figure is available online, so the numbers below use the US median of the states that publish one.
South Carolina class code for electrical
- 5190: Electrical Wiring - Within Buildings
- 7538 (Electric Light or Power Line Construction & Drivers)
Electrical work carries shock, arc flash and fall hazards. Outside power line construction is a separate class, 7538.
What comp costs per electrician in South Carolina
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 8,010 electricians on payrolls in South Carolina (May 2025), the 31st largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $28.24 an hour, 7% below the US median of $30.38.
This trade is a smaller part of the South Carolina job market than it is nationally: electricians hold 0.71 times their national share of jobs there.
At the US median of $1.90 per $100 of payroll (South Carolina does not publish its figure online), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.54 for every hour worked, or $1,116 a year full time. A 2-person crew comes to roughly $2,232 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. South Carolina pay runs from $21.31 an hour at the 10th percentile to $37.41 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.40 an hour on a new hire and $0.71 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in South Carolina
- Coverage required: 4+ employees
- Owners and sole proprietors: Excluded by default; may elect in if actively engaged
- State fund: Private market (no state fund)
- Waiting period: 7 days; retroactive if disability exceeds 14 days
- Penalty for going without: Up to $100 per day uninsured; the employer is personally liable for all benefits
South Carolina's statutory-employer doctrine makes a general contractor liable for an uninsured subcontractor's employees regardless of the GC's own headcount.
South Carolina vs neighboring states
- Georgia: about $1.95 per $100 of payroll
- North Carolina: about $2.00 per $100 of payroll
South Carolina does not publish its figure, so the first row is the US median. Among neighbors that publish, Georgia is the cheapest for electrical comp at about $1.95 and North Carolina the most expensive at about $2.00 per $100 of payroll.
If your crews work across the line, list those states under item 3.A or 3.C of your policy before the job starts. Rates follow the state where the work is done, not where your office is.
What moves a electrical comp bill
- Electrical is one of the cheaper construction classes, so overstated payroll often costs more than the rate itself. Estimate payroll honestly at renewal and true it up at audit.
- Ladder falls and shocks are the typical claims. Lockout and tagout procedures that are actually followed are what keep the experience mod under 1.0.
- Low-voltage, alarm, and solar work can carry different class codes in some states. Ask your agent before you add those lines to the business.
- Office staff and estimators who stay out of the field can usually be rated as clerical. Keep their hours off the field timesheets.