Idaho HVAC Workers Comp Rates (2026)
The published Idaho rate for HVAC workers comp, class 5537 (Heating, Ventilation, Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Systems - Installation, Service and Repair and Drivers), is $2.77 per $100 of payroll (effective January 1, 2026). Your experience modifier and any carrier discounts adjust it.
This is the published manual rate, so it already includes carrier expenses. Source.
Idaho class code for HVAC
- 5537: Heating, Ventilation, Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Systems - Installation, Service and Repair & Drivers
- 5535 (Sheet Metal Work - Installation & Drivers)
- 5183 (Plumbing NOC & Drivers)
HVAC technicians work in attics and on roofs and handle electrical circuits and refrigerants.
What comp costs per hvac technician in Idaho
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 4,550 heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers on payrolls in Idaho (May 2025), the 29th largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $27.04 an hour, 8% below the US median of $29.33.
This trade is a bigger part of the Idaho job market than it is nationally: heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers hold 2.0 times their national share of jobs there.
At the published Idaho rate of $2.77 per $100 of payroll for class 5537, comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.75 for every hour worked, or $1,558 a year full time. A 2-person crew comes to roughly $3,116 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. Idaho pay runs from $18.59 an hour at the 10th percentile to $38.84 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.51 an hour on a new hire and $1.08 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in Idaho
- Coverage required: 1 employee; no waivers permitted
- Owners and sole proprietors: A sole proprietor with no employees is exempt; employees must be covered
- State fund: Competitive state fund (Idaho State Insurance Fund)
- Waiting period: 5 days; retroactive if disability exceeds 14 days
Idaho coverage is strictly compulsory with no waivers, so an employee cannot sign away their right to workers comp.
Idaho vs neighboring states
- Oregon: about $2.29 per $100 of payroll
- Washington: about $5.43 per $100 of payroll
- Wyoming: about $2.39 per $100 of payroll
Among its neighbors, Oregon is the cheapest for HVAC comp at $2.29 and Washington the most expensive at $5.43 per $100 of payroll.
Working across the line into Washington or Wyoming needs separate coverage from that state's fund. A private policy's other-states coverage (item 3.C) does not reach monopolistic states.
What moves a HVAC comp bill
- Service techs and install crews usually share one class, so the rate is driven by your claim history: back strains from lifting condensers and falls from ladders and roofs are the typical losses.
- If you also do sheet-metal fabrication or duct work outside buildings, ask how your bureau classifies it. Some of that work rates differently from installation and service.
- Dispatchers, office staff, and outside salespeople can be rated as clerical or sales when their duties keep them out of the field. Keep their timesheets separate.
- Company vehicles put a lot of miles on service crews. A driving policy and clean MVRs help on the auto side and with comp, because vehicle accidents on the job are comp claims.