State-Compliant Coverage · Nationwide
Workers' Compensation Insurance for Contractors
Legally required in most states once you have employees. Get your crew's workers' comp quoted, bound, and certified entirely online — reviewed by a real licensed agent, no office visit required.
Workers' compensation insurance covers your employees' medical costs and lost wages if they're injured or become ill because of their job — a fall from a ladder, a repetitive-strain injury, exposure to a jobsite hazard. In exchange for that coverage, employees generally give up the right to sue their employer directly over a workplace injury, which is why nearly every state requires employers to carry it once they have staff on payroll. It's one of the most consistently enforced insurance requirements a contracting business faces, and the rules vary by state on exactly when coverage becomes mandatory.
Getting workers' comp in place doesn't require a sit-down meeting with a local agent. You describe your crew, payroll, and job classifications online, and a licensed agent at Contractors Choice Agency — founded in 2005, licensed to write commercial insurance in all 50 states — reviews the application personally and builds a quote that fits your state's requirements. Sign electronically, and your policy is active with a certificate of insurance often available the same day.
What's Covered
What workers' compensation actually covers
A standard workers' comp policy provides a defined set of no-fault benefits to an injured employee, plus a companion liability protection for your business:
Medical Expenses
Covers the cost of treating a work-related injury or illness — from an ER visit after a fall to ongoing treatment for a repetitive-strain injury.
Lost Wages
Replaces a portion of an injured employee's income while they're unable to work and recovering, typically a percentage of their average weekly wage.
Disability Benefits
Provides ongoing benefits if an injury results in temporary or permanent disability that limits an employee's ability to return to their previous role.
Rehabilitation
Covers physical therapy, occupational retraining, and other services needed to help an injured employee recover and return to work.
Death Benefits
Provides financial support to dependents in the rare event that a work-related injury or illness is fatal, including funeral expense coverage.
Employer's Liability
A companion coverage that protects your business if an injured employee's family sues over a workplace injury, outside the no-fault workers' comp system.
Who Needs It
Employees vs. 1099 subcontractors
The moment you hire a W-2 employee, most states require you to carry workers' compensation, regardless of how small your crew is. Genuine 1099 independent subcontractors are generally not your employees for workers' comp purposes, but state rules on who legally qualifies as an independent contractor versus an employee are strict and vary widely — misclassifying a worker can leave your business exposed to fines and uninsured claims. Many GCs also require every subcontractor on a job site, including solo 1099 operators, to carry their own workers' comp policy or a documented exemption before allowing them to work, so even sole proprietors without employees sometimes need a policy to satisfy a contract requirement.
If you're not sure whether your business is required to carry workers' comp — or whether your state allows an owner or officer exemption — a licensed agent can walk through your specific state's rules with you by phone before you apply.
It's also worth remembering that a workers' comp policy protects your business as much as it protects your crew. Without coverage, a single serious on-the-job injury can mean paying an employee's medical bills and lost wages directly out of your company's cash flow — and, in states where uninsured employers lose the workers' comp liability shield, potentially facing a personal-injury lawsuit on top of that. A properly written policy turns an unpredictable, potentially business-ending expense into a fixed, budgeted premium.
The Risk of Going Without
What happens if you skip workers' comp
States that mandate workers' compensation take enforcement seriously. Operating without required coverage can expose a business to fines, back-premium assessments, personal liability for an injured employee's full medical costs and lost wages, and in some states a stop-work order that halts every job you have running until coverage is in place. Because workers' comp benefits are typically the exclusive remedy for a workplace injury when coverage exists, going without it also removes that legal protection — an injured employee at an uninsured employer may be free to sue directly for damages that would otherwise have been capped and covered by the policy.
Owners and officers sometimes qualify for an exemption from carrying coverage on themselves, but the rules for who qualifies, and whether an exemption is even available, differ by state and by entity type. If you're not sure whether your LLC, corporation, or sole proprietorship needs a policy — or just needs an exemption filing — that's exactly the kind of question a licensed agent can walk through with you by phone before you apply, rather than guessing and risking a compliance gap.
Cost & Underwriting
How workers' comp premiums are calculated
Unlike general liability, which is priced primarily around risk class and revenue, workers' compensation premiums are built directly around your payroll. Each job classification your crew performs — framing, roofing, electrical, general labor — is assigned a class code with its own rate, and your premium is calculated by applying that rate to the payroll associated with each classification. That means your exact premium moves with your payroll and the mix of work your crew performs, and it's recalculated at renewal (or through a payroll audit) as your business changes:
Job classification / class codes for each role
Total payroll by classification
Claims history and experience modifier
State where the work is performed
Years in business
Safety programs and prior loss runs
Most policies offer monthly payment plans in addition to paying in full, and because premium is payroll-driven, many policies are billed as a percentage of payroll each pay period rather than a flat annual amount.
How It Fits Together
How workers' comp fits with your other coverage
General Liability
Workers' comp only covers your own employees. It doesn't protect against claims from customers or the public — that's general liability's job. Most contracting businesses need both to satisfy typical GC contract requirements.
Commercial Auto
If an employee is injured while driving a work vehicle, workers' comp typically handles their medical costs and lost wages, while commercial auto covers the vehicle damage and third-party liability from the accident itself.
Surety Bonds
Some state licensing boards and public-project bid requirements ask for proof of both an active workers' comp policy and a contractor license or performance bond before you can legally take on certain work.
Business Owner's Policy
A BOP bundles general liability and commercial property, but workers' comp is always written as its own separate policy — it can't be folded into a BOP, even though most contractors carry both.
The Process
Quoted, bound, and certified — all online
You never have to visit an office to get your crew covered. Tell us about your payroll and job classifications online, and a licensed agent builds a state-compliant quote, walks you through it by phone or email, and sends your policy for e-signature once you're ready to bind. Your certificate of insurance is typically available the same day. See the full breakdown on our How It Works page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Workers' compensation questions we hear often
Do I need both general liability and workers' compensation insurance?
Most contractors need both — general liability covers third-party bodily injury and property damage claims, while workers' compensation covers your own employees' injuries and is legally required in most states once you have employees.
What factors affect my commercial insurance premium?
Your trade/risk class, payroll and revenue, years in business, claims history, coverage limits, and location all factor into your premium.
How do I file a claim, and does it have to happen in person?
Claims can be filed entirely by phone or online through the carrier's claims process — no in-person visit is required at any point.
Will filing a claim raise my premium, and by how much?
It depends on the type and size of the claim and your carrier's underwriting guidelines — a single small claim often has minimal impact, while frequent or large claims are more likely to affect your renewal premium.
Ready to cover your crew?
Call 844-967-5247 or request a free quote online — a licensed agent will respond within 1 business day.