Minnesota HVAC Workers Comp Rates (2026)

Minnesota does not publish its HVAC class figures online. Across the 26 states that do, the median typical premium is about $2.74 per $100 of payroll. Ask a carrier or the state's rating bureau for the current Minnesota figure.

No official Minnesota figure is available online, so the numbers below use the US median of the states that publish one.

Minnesota 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 Minnesota

The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 4,200 heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers on payrolls in Minnesota (May 2025), the 30th largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $36.71 an hour, 25% above the US median of $29.33.

This trade is a smaller part of the Minnesota job market than it is nationally: heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers hold 0.54 times their national share of jobs there.

At the US median of $2.74 per $100 of payroll (Minnesota does not publish its figure online), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $1.01 for every hour worked, or $2,092 a year full time. A 2-person crew comes to roughly $4,184 a year in premium before any experience mod.

Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. Minnesota pay runs from $23.18 an hour at the 10th percentile to $48.09 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.64 an hour on a new hire and $1.32 on a senior hand.

Workers comp requirements in Minnesota

Coverage required: 1 employee; no hours or wage floor
Owners and sole proprietors: Sole proprietors, partners, and certain closely-held owners excluded; may elect in
State fund: Private market (no state fund)
Waiting period: 3 days; paid back only if disability continues 10+ days
Penalty for going without: Up to $1,000 per employee per uninsured week; willful failure is a gross misdemeanor

Minnesota's Special Compensation Fund pays injured workers of uninsured employers directly, then recovers from the employer; coverage must also be reported when getting or renewing a state license.

Minnesota vs neighboring states

Iowa: about $3.28 per $100 of payroll
North Dakota: about $2.00 per $100 of payroll
Wisconsin: about $3.29 per $100 of payroll

Minnesota does not publish its figure, so the first row is the US median. Among neighbors that publish, North Dakota is the cheapest for HVAC comp at about $2.00 and Wisconsin the most expensive at about $3.29 per $100 of payroll.

Working across the line into North Dakota 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.