A Florida contractor can satisfy the workers comp requirement three ways: a standard policy from a carrier that writes the trade, a PEO (employee-leasing) arrangement where the leasing company's master policy covers the crew, or the FWCJUA, the state's assigned-risk pool. The standard market is the default when a carrier will write the class at an acceptable price. A PEO is often cheaper than a direct high-risk policy for the same payroll, because the master policy absorbs the class. The FWCJUA is the door of last resort, priced in tiers, and open only after a documented good-faith effort to place coverage voluntarily.
- Florida construction employers need coverage at the first employee; non-construction generally at four. Roofing contractors carry it regardless of size, sole proprietors included (Florida Statutes Chapter 440).
- Construction exemptions: filed online through the Division's CCIS, $50 fee plus a required tutorial, capped at three exempt officers or members per business, up to 30 days to review, valid two years. An exempt owner injured on the job receives nothing from workers comp.
- Starting math for any route: payroll in $100 units × the class rate. NCCI class 5551 (roofing) carries a 2026 Florida filed rate of $6.75 per $100. Modification, carrier factors, credits and audit results change the final figure.
- FWCJUA tiers for rated employers: Tier 1 = mod below 1.00, no lost-time claims, medical-only claims at or under 20% of premium; Tier 2 = mod 1.00 to 1.10, same claim criteria; Tier 3 = everything else. Employee leasing and staffing companies are Tier 3 only. Tier 1 is closed to new businesses and to anyone with a coverage lapse.
- A certificate of insurance is free once the policy exists and is often same-day. GCs and owners require it before a sub sets foot on site.
The three routes side by side
| Route | Who it fits | How the price is built | What to watch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard (voluntary) policy | Contractors whose class a carrier will write: clean loss runs, a mod near or below 1.00, payroll and operations described precisely. | Class rate per $100 of payroll × your experience modification × carrier factors, credits and assessments, trued up at audit. | The class code is the carrier's or NCCI's call, not yours. A rising mod or a lost-time claim narrows who will quote next year. |
| PEO / employee leasing | Contractors declined or priced out by the standard market, storm-surge crews, operations with a mod above 1.00, anyone who also wants payroll and HR handled. | The leasing company's master policy absorbs the class; you pay a bundled per-payroll charge that includes the workers comp component plus an administrative fee. | Read the contract: who is the employer of record, what happens at termination, and whether the certificate names your company. The PEO underwrites you too. |
| FWCJUA (assigned-risk pool) | Employers who could not place coverage voluntarily after a documented good-faith effort. | Tiered: Tier 1 for the cleanest rated employers, Tier 2 for mods from 1.00 to 1.10, Tier 3 for everyone else. Staffing and leasing companies are Tier 3 only. | Materially higher cost than the voluntary market, and no mod threshold puts you here on its own. Fix losses and data before renewal rather than moving applications around. |
Route 1: the standard market
This is the default and, when it works, the simplest. A carrier that writes your trade quotes off your payroll, your class codes and your experience modification. Two things decide whether the door stays open: how precisely your operations are described (repair versus replacement, heights, subcontract share, storm work) and what your loss runs say. A single lost-time claim or a mod above 1.00 does not close it, but each one shortens the list of carriers who will look.
Route 2: PEO or employee leasing
In a PEO arrangement the leasing company becomes the employer of record for payroll and workers comp while you direct the work. Because the leasing company pools many client companies under one master policy, it can carry classes and loss histories that a small operation could not place alone, and for the same payroll it is often cheaper than a direct high-risk policy. That is why declined and non-renewed Florida contractors end up here more than anywhere else.
It is not free money. The bundled rate includes an administrative fee, the PEO underwrites you on your own history, and the contract decides practical things: how fast a certificate is issued, what it names, and what happens to coverage the day the relationship ends. Ask those three questions before signing anything.
Route 3: the FWCJUA
The Florida Workers' Compensation Joint Underwriting Association is the residual market, the place for employers nobody in the voluntary market would write. It prices in tiers, and the tier rules are public: Tier 1 needs a mod below 1.00, no lost-time claims and medical-only claims at or under 20% of premium; Tier 2 covers mods from 1.00 to 1.10 on the same claim criteria; Tier 3 is everything else, and employee leasing and staffing companies can only be Tier 3. Tier 1 is closed to new businesses and to anyone with a coverage lapse. Non-rated employers are judged on three years of loss history instead.
The most repeated myth in this niche is that a mod above some number sends you to the pool automatically. It does not. Eligibility turns on a documented good-faith effort to place coverage in the voluntary market. Say "a rising mod narrows voluntary options"; never "above 1.25 you go to assigned risk".
How to choose, in three questions
- Will a carrier write my class at a price I can live with? If yes, Route 1. Describe the work precisely and start the renewal early with clean loss runs.
- Was I declined, non-renewed, or quoted out of the market? Route 2 first. A PEO master policy usually beats a direct high-risk policy for the same payroll; read the contract's certificate and termination terms.
- Has a documented good-faith effort failed? Route 3, and know your tier before you apply. Then fix the losses and the data so next year's renewal is a Route 1 or 2 conversation.
People Also Ask
Can a Florida roofer skip all three by filing an exemption?
Only for the exempt officers themselves, capped at three per construction business, and never for employees. An exempt owner injured on the job receives nothing from workers comp.
Does a PEO issue certificates of insurance?
Certificates come from the policy that covers the work. Under a leasing arrangement that is the leasing company's master policy, so confirm before signing whose name appears and how fast it is issued; with an active policy a certificate is often same-day.
What does the FWCJUA cost compared with the voluntary market?
Materially more. It exists so that required coverage is always available, not to compete on price. The tier you land in is set by the public rules above, not by negotiation.
Is the class code the same under all three routes?
The classification follows the work actually performed, and the carrier or NCCI confirms it. The route changes who carries the policy, not what your crew does on a roof.
Sources: FWCJUA pricing tiers · Florida Division of Workers' Compensation coverage requirements · Division of Workers' Compensation, exemptions (CCIS) · Florida Statutes Chapter 440. Classification and pricing must be confirmed by the carrier or NCCI. WorkCompTeam is a referral service, not an insurer and not a licensed agency: qualified requests are routed to its licensed placement partner, Southeast Personnel Leasing, Inc. (SPLI), a Florida PEO, which quotes, binds and issues coverage. Nothing on this page is a quote or a guarantee of coverage.
Related guides
Start with who must carry it in Florida, then what an exemption really allows, what moves the price, and the trade page for roofing or tree removal. Declined or overpaying? Request a review below.