Indiana Roofing Workers Comp Rates (2026)
The published Indiana loss cost for roofing workers comp, class 5551 (Roofing - All Kinds and Drivers), is $3.058 per $100 of payroll (effective January 1, 2026). Carriers multiply it by their own filed multiplier, so a typical premium is about $4.59.
A loss cost covers expected claims only. Each carrier files its own multiplier for expenses; in the states that publish the full list, the median is about 1.5, which is what the typical premium here uses. Your quote can be lower or higher. Source.
Indiana class code for roofing
- 5551: Roofing - All Kinds & Drivers
Falls are the main hazard in roofing. In 2023 roofing contractors accounted for 110 fatal falls, 26 percent of all fatal falls in construction (BLS).
What comp costs per roofer in Indiana
The Bureau of Labor Statistics counts 2,980 roofers on payrolls in Indiana (May 2025), the 14th largest workforce among the 50 states and DC. The median wage is $27.88 an hour, 5% above the US median of $26.65.
Roofers make up about the same share of Indiana jobs as they do nationally (location quotient 1.07).
At a typical Indiana premium of about $4.59 per $100 of payroll (the published loss cost of $3.06 for class 5551 times a 1.5 carrier multiplier), comp on one worker at that wage costs about $1.28 for every hour worked, or $2,662 a year full time. A 4-person crew comes to roughly $10,647 a year in premium before any experience mod.
Because premium is charged on payroll, who you hire moves the bill. Indiana pay runs from $19.15 an hour at the 10th percentile to $42.91 at the 90th, so the same rate costs $0.88 an hour on a new hire and $1.97 on a senior hand.
Workers comp requirements in Indiana
- Coverage required: 1 employee
- Owners and sole proprietors: Owners exempt for themselves; construction independent contractors file a Clearance Certificate
- State fund: Private market (no state fund)
- Waiting period: 7 days; retroactive if disability exceeds 21 days
- Penalty for going without: Up to $10,000 per violation plus $50 per day per uncovered employee
Indiana sets rates through its own Indiana Compensation Rating Bureau rather than NCCI.
Indiana vs neighboring states
Indiana has the lowest roofing comp rate in its region; every neighboring state charges more per $100 of payroll.
Working across the line into Ohio 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 roofing comp bill
- Falls drive roofing claims, and one serious fall can push your experience mod well above 1.0 for three policy years. A written fall-protection plan and documented toolbox talks are what carriers ask to see before they offer a safety credit.
- Uninsured subcontractors are the most common audit surprise in roofing. If a sub cannot show you a certificate of insurance, the auditor adds what you paid them to your own payroll at the roofing rate.
- Estimators and salespeople who never go on a roof can often be classed separately at a far lower rate, but only if your payroll records show their hours apart from field work.
- Overtime premium (the extra half in time and a half) is excluded from comp payroll in most states. Record it separately so you are not charged the roofing rate on it.