Indiana Workers' Comp Rate Calculator

Workers' comp in Indiana: what's different

Indiana runs a private market with no state fund. Employers either buy a policy from an authorized insurer or prove to the Worker's Compensation Board of Indiana (WCB) that they can pay claims themselves. Pricing runs through the Indiana Compensation Rating Bureau (ICRB), a statutory rating organization made up of every insurer licensed to write workers' comp in the state. The ICRB files rates with the Indiana Department of Insurance (IDOI), and NCCI prepares the actuarial work behind those filings.

Who must carry coverage

IC 22-3-5-1 requires every employer under the Act to insure or to qualify as a self-insurer. The definition of employer covers anyone "using the services of another for pay," and the statute sets no minimum headcount. The WCB tells workers they are covered from their first day on the job.

Indiana's carve-outs are specific:

• Excluded work. The Act does not apply to casual laborers, farm or agricultural employees, household employees, or part-time youth coaches working under an independent contractor agreement with a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Their employers may opt in by written notice.
• Corporate officers. Executive officers of a for-profit corporation count as employees. An officer may elect out, but the exclusion takes effect only once the insurer and the WCB receive written notice (State Form 36097).
• Sole proprietors, partners, and LLC members or managers are outside the Act unless they elect in with the same kind of notice.
• Construction trades. A sole proprietor or partner working as an independent contractor in construction who does not elect coverage must obtain a certificate of exemption. It takes effect seven business days after the WCB stamps it.
• Independent contractors are judged by IRS guidelines. Licensed real estate agents are not employees if they are paid mainly on sales volume and have a written agreement with their broker saying they are not treated as employees for tax purposes.
• Hiring contractors. If you contract out work worth more than $1,000 without getting a WCB certificate showing the contractor is insured, you can be liable for that contractor's injured workers.

The Act also applies when an Indiana-covered worker is hurt in another state or abroad.

Where coverage comes from

You have two routes under IC 22-3-5-1:

• a policy from an insurer authorized to write workers' comp in Indiana; or
• self-insurance, by proving financial ability to the WCB. The Board may require a bond or other security, and it charges a $500 application fee and a $250 renewal fee.

Who sets rates

Each year the ICRB must file recommended rates and minimum premiums for the Insurance Commissioner's approval. Filings must reach the Commissioner at least 30 days before they take effect and are deemed approved unless disapproved within 30 days.

The filing holds both advisory rates and advisory loss costs. An insurer can adopt the advisory rates, deviate from them, or apply its own loss cost multiplier to the loss costs. Assigned risk policies are different: insurers must use the filed rates there.

The current filing took effect January 1, 2026. IDOI approved it on September 30, 2025, cutting the overall advisory rate level 5.8% and loss costs 6.1%. On September 24, 2026, IDOI approved the next filing for January 1, 2027: rates down 4.7% and loss costs down 5.6%.

Every insurer must follow the classification system and experience rating plan that the ICRB files and the Commissioner approves. The ICRB says Indiana has adopted the NCCI Basic Manual (2021 edition), and its code list includes both NCCI codes and Indiana-specific codes.

Experience rating

The ICRB calculates each qualifying employer's experience mod, and insurers may not deviate from it. The plan is mandatory. For ratings effective July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2027, you qualify with $7,000 of subject premium in the latest 24 months of the experience period, or a $3,500 annual average if more than 24 months are used. From July 1, 2027, the thresholds rise to $7,500 and $3,750.

If no insurer will write you

State law creates the Indiana Workers Compensation Insurance Plan (the assigned risk plan), and the ICRB administers it with the Commissioner's approval. To qualify, you need written declinations from three nonaffiliated insurers within 60 days before you apply, and one must come from your current carrier if you have one. The ICRB then picks a servicing carrier to issue the policy. All insurers share the losses through a reinsurance pool.

Assigned risk policies use the voluntary advisory rates, plus a 30% surcharge on the part of standard premium above $2,750.

Penalties for going uninsured

• Criminal. Failing to insure under IC 22-3-5-1 is a Class A misdemeanor, which carries up to one year in jail and a fine up to $5,000.
• Double benefits. In a claim against an uninsured employer, the Board may award up to double compensation, plus medical expenses and attorney fees.
• Business shutdown. In a criminal case, if a compensable claim has been filed and you fail to pay benefits when due, a court may order you to temporarily stop doing business in Indiana. The order lasts until you show proof of insurance and give any other assurances the Board requires.
• Proof of compliance. If you do not answer a WCB request for proof of coverage within 10 days, the Board may charge $100 a day. It waives the penalty if you comply by the 20th day after its notice. If you still do not comply, or do not pay the penalty, the Board may list your name on its website after notice and a hearing.

Your ongoing obligations

• Post the notice. Display a WCB-approved notice naming your insurer (or claims administrator) with its address and phone number. Put it where you post federal workplace notices. Remote workers must get the same information electronically or by your usual method.
• Report injuries. Within seven days of learning of an injury that causes death or needs medical care beyond first aid, send a report to your insurer. Self-insured employers report straight to the WCB. The insurer then files the First Report of Employee Injury, Illness (State Form 34401) with the Board by EDI within seven days of receipt or 14 days after you learned of the injury, whichever is later.
• File proof of coverage with the WCB within 10 days after a policy expires or is canceled.

Missing a notice or report can bring a civil penalty of up to $50, rising to $150 and then $300 for repeat violations.

Worked example: how the calculator estimates premium

Premium = (payroll / 100) x rate per $100 x experience mod

The rate here is the ICRB's advisory rate for class code 5551, effective January 1, 2026. That is a full rate, not a loss cost. The filing lists codes by number only, without titles. Indiana uses the NCCI Basic Manual, and NCCI labels class 5551 as roofing. The payroll and mod are hypothetical.

• Annual payroll: $250,000
• Code 5551 advisory rate: $4.160 per $100
• Experience mod: 0.95

Step by step

1. Payroll in hundreds: $250,000 / 100 = 2,500
2. Manual premium: 2,500 x $4.160 = $10,400
3. Apply the mod: $10,400 x 0.95 = $9,880

The filing also lists a $160 expense constant, which brings this example to $10,040. Premium discounts are optional in Indiana and start only above the first $10,000 of standard premium. For policies effective on or after January 1, 2027, the approved 5551 advisory rate drops to $3.600, which gives $8,550 before the expense constant. A real quote can differ, since insurers may deviate or use loss costs with their own multiplier.

Frequently asked questions

Official sources

• Worker's Compensation Board of Indiana, home page and online services
• WCB, Employers
• WCB, Compliance (statutory fines and fees, injury reporting)
• WCB, Independent Contractors
• WCB, Who Is Eligible (employee FAQ)
• WCB, Worker's Compensation Notice poster
• WCB, State Form 34401, First Report of Employee Injury, Illness
• State Form 36097, Notice for Worker's Compensation and Occupational Diseases Coverage (ICRB copy)
• Indiana Code Title 22 (2026 edition; IC 22-3-2, 22-3-4, 22-3-5, 22-3-6)
• Indiana Code Title 27 (2026 edition; IC 27-7-2, rating bureau and assigned risk plan)
• Indiana Code IC 35-50-3-2 (Class A misdemeanor), Title 35 (2026 edition)
• ICRB, About Us
• ICRB, Authority
• ICRB, Rate Filings
• ICRB, Classification Code Rates and Look-up
• ICRB, Classification System Rules
• ICRB, Experience Rating Overview
• ICRB, Assigned Risk
• ICRB, Assigned Risk Eligibility Rules
• ICRB, Assigned Risk Surcharge
• ICRB, WCIP and Articles of Agreement
• ICRB Circular 2025-08 with the approved January 1, 2026 filing
• ICRB Circular 2026-08 with the approved January 1, 2027 filing
• NCCI, AIS 2026 State of the Line presentation (class 5551 label)

Sources accessed 2026-10-16 and 2026-10-17.

This is general information, not legal advice. Confirm details with the Worker's Compensation Board of Indiana.

Reviewer: Sam Newland, CFP, Founder of Benefitra. Last updated October 17, 2026. How the calculator works. Editorial policy.