Workers comp,defined.

The dollars-per-$100-of-payroll rate assigned to each class code by NCCI.

NCCI publishes base rates annually. Example: class 5183 (plumbing) might carry a $5.25 base rate, meaning every $100 of plumbing-class payroll generates $5.25 of base premium before state modifier, experience mod, and other adjustments. State regulators modify these rates using state multipliers.

Tennessee's Bureau of Workers' Compensation — state regulator.

The Bureau of Workers' Compensation (BWC) is Tennessee's regulatory body for workers comp. Notable difference from Georgia: Tennessee's BWC uses a 1-employee threshold for construction-industry businesses (vs. Georgia's 3-employee threshold across all industries). Construction includes trades like carpentry, HVAC, plumbing, electrical, and roofing.

A one-page document proving you have active workers comp coverage.

A certificate of insurance (COI) is the standard document shown to GCs, property owners, and other contracting parties to prove you carry workers comp. It lists your policy number, carrier, coverage limits, and expiration date. GCs almost always require certs from subs before they start work. Your carrier or agent can issue new certs on request at no charge.

Carriers weigh how often you have claims more heavily than how big any single claim is.

Five $5,000 claims hurt your experience mod significantly more than one $25,000 claim, even though the total dollars are identical. Frequency signals systemic safety issues; severity can be an unlucky event. Cartier underwriting views frequency as the red flag. Preventing small claims matters more than you'd think.

The 4-digit NCCI number that classifies the work your business does.

A class code categorizes your business by the type of work your employees perform. NCCI (the National Council on Compensation Insurance) publishes base rates for every code. Trade examples: 5645 (construction/carpentry), 5538 (HVAC), 5183 (plumbing), 5551 (residential roofing), 5190 (electrical), 5606 (contractor executive supervisor). Your class code × base rate × state modifier = the starting point for your premium.

A multiplier based on your 3-year claims history that increases or decreases your premium.

Your experience mod adjusts your premium based on how your loss history compares to industry averages for your class code. A 1.0 is average. Below 1.0 = discount (cleaner than average). Above 1.0 = surcharge (worse than average). Between a 0.85 and a 1.15 mod on the same payroll, you can see $15,000+/year premium difference. Mod uses a rolling 3-year window that excludes the most recent policy period, so changes take time to reflect.

OSHA-mandated safety systems for workers at elevation.

OSHA's fall protection rules require harnesses, guardrails, or safety nets for construction workers at heights of 6+ feet (residential) or 10+ feet (commercial). Documented fall protection programs are effectively required for carriers to quote roofing and framing businesses. Fall fatalities are the #1 cause of death in construction and drive the highest comp rates in roofing.

A detailed history of your workers comp claims over the last 3-5 years.

Loss runs are a formal report of every workers comp claim filed under your policy — claim date, nature of injury, paid medical, paid wages, reserves, and current status. Carriers use loss runs to calculate experience mod and underwrite renewals. You're entitled to request yours from your current carrier at any time, and should review them annually for coding errors.

The National Council on Compensation Insurance — sets class codes and base rates nationally.

NCCI is the ratings bureau that publishes workers compensation class codes, base rates, and experience modifier calculations for most states. A handful of states (California, New York, and a few others) run their own independent rating bureaus instead — but in the majority of states, NCCI data is what drives the system.

When a carrier declines to renew your policy at expiration.

Non-renewal happens when a carrier exits a state, exits a class, or decides a specific account's loss history doesn't fit their appetite. A clean non-renewal (carrier-driven) is easy to replace. A claims-driven non-renewal is harder — you may need state fund or specialty market coverage. Non-renewal is different from cancellation, which happens mid-policy term.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration — federal workplace safety regulator.

OSHA sets federal workplace safety standards enforced through inspections, citations, and fines. Compliance with OSHA rules (fall protection, PPE, hazard communication, recordkeeping) is the baseline expectation for any contractor. OSHA-10 and OSHA-30 safety certifications for employees are often required on commercial jobs and help with workers comp underwriting.

Electing out of workers comp coverage on yourself as a business owner.

Most states allow sole proprietors, LLC members, and corporate officers to elect out of workers comp coverage on themselves. The owner's wages then don't factor into premium calculation, but the owner also has no comp benefits if they personally get hurt on the job. Rules vary by state and entity type. Employees and non-excluded owners still need coverage.

A pre-approved list of medical providers injured employees must see in Georgia.

Georgia's State Board of Workers' Compensation requires employers to post a panel of at least 6 approved medical providers that injured employees must choose from. Compliance with panel rules is important: failing to post a valid panel can give injured employees the right to choose any doctor, often at higher cost. Tennessee and Alabama have different provider rules.

A billing method that calculates premium from real-time payroll, eliminating audit surprises.

Instead of paying premium on estimated annual payroll and reconciling at year-end audit, pay-as-you-go calculates premium with each pay period in real time. Eliminates surprise audit bills. Particularly valuable for seasonal businesses or businesses growing fast mid-policy. Not all carriers offer it.

Year-end reconciliation comparing your estimated payroll to actual payroll.

Every workers comp policy is priced on estimated payroll at policy start. At policy end, the carrier audits your actual payroll and adjusts — either you owe more (underestimated) or you get a refund (overestimated). Common audit findings that cost contractors include uninsured 1099 subs, miscategorized overtime, and wrong class code splits.

The estimated future cost of an open claim, set by the carrier.

When a claim is open, the carrier sets a reserve — their estimate of what the total claim will eventually cost including future medical, lost wages, and legal. Reserves factor into your experience mod even before claims close. Carriers sometimes set aggressive reserves that inflate mod — worth auditing on your loss runs.

A documented plan to bring injured employees back to light duty during recovery.

When an injured employee can't perform their regular job but is medically cleared for light duty, a return-to-work program offers them temporary alternative work (dispatching, paperwork, training) at regular pay. Reduces lost-wage claim costs significantly, which in turn reduces experience mod impact. Carriers view documented return-to-work programs favorably at underwriting.

The State Board of Workers' Compensation — Georgia's regulatory body.

The State Board of Workers' Compensation (SBWC) regulates Georgia's workers comp system — sets rules, handles disputes, mediates claims, publishes forms. Any Georgia employer with 3+ employees is under SBWC jurisdiction. Common SBWC interactions include posting your panel, filing injury reports, and responding to claim disputes.

A business owned and operated by a single person without separate legal entity.

Sole proprietorship is the simplest business structure — the owner and the business are legally the same. In most states, sole props can typically elect out of workers comp on themselves and only need coverage for employees they hire. Many contractors start as sole props before converting to LLCs for liability protection.

Assigning different class codes to different portions of an employee's work.

When an employee or business does work that legitimately falls across multiple class codes, carriers allow payroll to split. Most common example: a contractor-owner spending 60% of the week on-site as field labor (class 5645) and 40% as supervisor (class 5606). Correct splits require documented role/time evidence and can save significant premium.

The market of last resort for workers comp when no carrier will write you.

Every state runs a workers comp state fund (sometimes called the assigned risk pool or residual market) that must write any eligible employer — including hard-to-place risks with bad claims history or non-renewals. Coverage is available but typically priced higher than the voluntary market. A specialist agent can usually find voluntary-market coverage for accounts the state fund would accept.

A state-level multiplier applied to NCCI base rates.

Each state adjusts NCCI's national base rates using its own modifier reflecting local loss experience, medical costs, and regulatory environment. Georgia runs at 1.00 (NCCI baseline). Tennessee runs ~0.85 (15% below baseline — cheaper). Alabama runs ~1.10 (10% above baseline — slightly more expensive).

An independent worker contracted to a trade business — treated as employees for comp unless they carry their own policy.

In construction states, 1099 subcontractors on your job site are counted as your employees for workers comp purposes unless they carry their own active workers comp policy and provide a valid certificate of insurance. Uninsured subs trigger premium audit adjustments that can be thousands of dollars per sub. Always collect certs before paying any sub.