Rhode Island HVAC Workers Comp Rates (2026)
Rhode Island 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 Rhode Island figure.
No official Rhode Island figure is available online, so the numbers below use the US median of the states that publish one.
Rhode Island 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 Rhode Island
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 1,450 heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers on payrolls in Rhode Island (May 2025), the 44th largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $32.39 an hour, 10% above the US median of $29.33.
Heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers make up about the same share of Rhode Island jobs as they do nationally (location quotient 1.10).
At the US median of $2.74 per $100 of payroll (Rhode Island does not publish its figure online), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.89 for every hour worked, or $1,846 a year full time. A 2-person crew comes to roughly $3,692 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. Rhode Island pay runs from $18.32 an hour at the 10th percentile to $50.04 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.50 an hour on a new hire and $1.37 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in Rhode Island
- Coverage required: 1 employee
- Owners and sole proprietors: Sole proprietors and partners exempt; officers may waive via a state filing
- State fund: Private market (Beacon Mutual is the dominant carrier)
- Waiting period: 3 days; retroactive only if disability exceeds 21 days
- Penalty for going without: Fines up to $1,000 per day; chargeable as a felony; stop-work orders
Rhode Island requires construction independent contractors to file a designation notice annually and separately for each hiring entity.
Rhode Island vs neighboring states
- Connecticut: about $3.55 per $100 of payroll
- Massachusetts: about $2.22 per $100 of payroll
Rhode Island does not publish its figure, so the first row is the US median. Among neighbors that publish, Massachusetts is the cheapest for HVAC comp at about $2.22 and Connecticut the most expensive at about $3.55 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 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.