South Carolina HVAC Workers Comp Rates (2026)
South Carolina 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 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 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 South Carolina
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 6,920 heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers on payrolls in South Carolina (May 2025), the 22nd largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $27.22 an hour, 7% below the US median of $29.33.
Heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers make up about the same share of South Carolina jobs as they do nationally (location quotient 1.14).
At the US median of $2.74 per $100 of payroll (South Carolina does not publish its figure online), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $0.75 for every hour worked, or $1,551 a year full time. A 2-person crew comes to roughly $3,103 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 $18.83 an hour at the 10th percentile to $36.31 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.52 an hour on a new hire and $0.99 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 $2.78 per $100 of payroll
- North Carolina: about $2.34 per $100 of payroll
South Carolina does not publish its figure, so the first row is the US median. Among neighbors that publish, North Carolina is the cheapest for HVAC comp at about $2.34 and Georgia the most expensive at about $2.78 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.