Do I need workers comp in Florida if I have one employee in construction?
Yes. Florida treats a construction business as an employer once it has one employee, against four for most other businesses, and every electrician, painter, roofer or other contractor with an employee must carry workers comp. An electrical or construction contractor also needs workers comp or a state exemption certificate to get or renew a state certification. Up to three officers who each own at least 10% of the company can exempt themselves for a $50 fee, valid two years, but an employee can never be exempted.
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Joe Gorman
Co-Founder | President of Commercial Lines
Came up in construction, on site and in the office, then moved into sales. Went out on a limb to become Boring’s first dedicated salesperson when the agency had no sales team at all, and now leads it. Landscaping is the class he writes most: grounds maintenance, tree work, irrigation and the spray operations that push an account out of preferred appetite.
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The detail
Florida defines employment to include "with respect to the construction industry, all private employment in which one or more employees are employed by the same employer," against "four or more employees" for other private employment.
In the construction industry, "no more than three officers of a corporation or of any group of affiliated corporations may elect to be exempt," and the officers must each own at least 10 percent of the stock.
For workers comp purposes, an "officer of a corporation" includes a member owning at least 10 percent of a Florida limited liability company.
The Department of Financial Services charges a fee of $50 for each construction industry certificate of election to be exempt or its renewal, and a certificate issued on or after January 1, 2013 is valid for 2 years after its effective date.
An applicant for an electrical contractor certification or registration must submit an affidavit that the applicant has obtained both workers’ compensation insurance or an acceptable exemption certificate issued by the department and public liability and property damage insurance.
A construction contractor applying for or renewing a certificate or registration submits an affidavit that the applicant has obtained workers’ compensation insurance as required by chapter 440, public liability insurance and property damage insurance.
When a contractor sublets work, the contractor "shall be liable for, and shall secure, the payment of compensation" to the subcontractors’ employees on that work, "except to employees of a subcontractor who has secured such payment."
An employer that fails to secure workers comp when required faces a stop-work order and a penalty equal to 2 times the premium it would have paid on its payroll at approved manual rates for the uncovered periods within the preceding 12 months.
Between August and October 2026, five Florida contractors on our calls needed workers comp quickly, three electricians and two painters. One electrician licensed in New York needed a Florida policy for two employees to file his Florida license, and a small residential and commercial electrical shop was quoted by two markets at about $6,300 and $6,400 a year.
Boring Insurance call records, calls from Aug to Oct 2026 (clients and carriers unnamed)
What this means for you
- Count your people the way Florida does. In construction one employee makes you an employer under the workers comp law. The statute counts anyone paid for work under a contract for hire, written or oral, so a helper paid in cash counts too.
- The exemption covers owners, not crews. Up to three officers or LLC members with at least 10% each can file for an exemption through the Department of Financial Services. Everyone else on the payroll needs a policy, and a general contractor will ask for your certificate or your exemption before you start.
- Get the policy before the license affidavit. The licensing boards take your sworn statement that coverage or an exemption is in place. Signing it first and buying the policy later is the order that causes trouble.
- Expect painters and roofers to be harder to place. On our calls, Florida painting contractors found several standard markets declined or already reserved, and the workable quote came from a specialty market. Start a week before the job, not the night before.
Related questions
- I am the only person in my company. Do I need workers comp in Florida?
Not if you are an officer or an LLC member owning at least 10% and you file a construction exemption with the Department of Financial Services. Without the exemption, a corporate officer counts as an employee. Many general contractors still require a policy from every subcontractor, so check the contract.
- How fast can a Florida contractor get workers comp?
Often the same day for a small electrical or HVAC shop with clean history, because several carriers quote it online. Painters, roofers and new businesses usually take longer, and on our calls some Florida painters went through several markets before one would quote.
- Can a general contractor’s policy cover my employees?
Florida makes a contractor liable for the workers comp of a subcontractor’s employees unless the subcontractor has secured its own, which is exactly why the contractor will ask for your certificate or charge you for its own coverage. Carry your own policy and send the certificate.
- Workers comp and 1099 subcontractors
- What does Florida workers comp cost for an electrician or a painter?
It is priced per $100 of payroll by class of work, so a painter with $100,000 of payroll pays several times what a one-person shop pays. Two markets on our calls quoted a small Florida electrical shop at about $6,300 and $6,400 a year. Ask for the down payment as well as the annual figure.
- How payroll sets the premium
Need this handled?
Reading about it and having it handled are different jobs, and the second one is ours. We place the accounts other brokers decline — claims history, a cancellation, an unusual operation, a business nobody wants to underwrite twice — and we will tell you when the policy you already have is the right one. Tell us the situation and a licensed human replies the same business day.
Written by the licensed brokers at Boring Insurance. Last updated 2026-10-05. See all guides.