Tennessee Workers' Comp Rate Calculator

Workers' comp in Tennessee: what's different

Tennessee splits employers into two groups. Construction businesses must cover every employee starting with the first hire, while most other businesses only need a policy once they reach five employees. Coverage comes from licensed private insurers or approved self-insurance; Tennessee has no state fund. The Bureau of Workers' Compensation, part of the Department of Labor and Workforce Development, enforces the coverage rules. The Department of Commerce and Insurance (TDCI) approves loss costs and assigned risk rates, and NCCI is the state's designated rate service organization.

Who must carry coverage

Construction and coal mining. A construction services provider with one or more employees must insure them, and that includes seasonal and part-time workers, the owner's relatives, and people who work "as needed." Office staff count too, because the Bureau looks at the nature of the business, not each person's job. A business is treated as construction if its governing class code, the one with the most payroll, appears on the Bureau's contracting codes list. Coal mining employers must also cover every employee.

Construction owners. Sole proprietors, partners, LLC members and corporate officers in construction must be covered unless they are listed on the Bureau's Exemption Registry. Up to five people per corporation, LLC or partnership can qualify, and a sole proprietor must own 100% of the business. The filing fee is $100, or $50 if you hold an active license from the Board for Licensing Contractors. An exemption covers only the named person, never the company's employees, and the applicant attests to giving up the right to sue under the comp law for a job injury.

Everyone else. A non-construction employer needs coverage at five or more employees. Minors, working family members and part-time workers all count toward the five. Owners of a sole proprietorship, LLC or partnership do not count. Full-time corporate officers do count, even if they opt out.

Other rules worth knowing:

• Corporate officers outside construction can exclude themselves by filing Form I-6 with the corporation, along with an affidavit that no one pushed them to waive coverage.
• Non-construction owners are not covered by their own policy unless they elect in with Form I-4, filed with the insurer.
• Dropping below five. A non-construction employer whose headcount falls below five may withdraw by filing Form I-3. The requirement ends once the Bureau accepts the form.
• Excluded groups include domestic servants, farm and agricultural laborers, casual work outside your regular business, interstate common carriers covered by federal law, state and local governments, and volunteer ski patrol. An excluded employer can still buy a policy voluntarily.
• Independent contractors. The Bureau weighs seven factors, with the most weight on who controls the work. Handing someone a 1099 does not settle it.
• Out-of-state employers. A construction company from another state needs a Tennessee policy listing Tennessee in item 3A from its first day of work here. A non-construction worker in the state temporarily (no more than 14 days in a row or 25 days in a calendar year) may be exempt if the employer has coverage in another state.

Where coverage comes from

TDCI describes a competitive market with around 400 companies licensed to sell workers' comp. Other routes are the assigned risk plan, a group self-insurance pool approved by TDCI, or an individual self-insurer license from TDCI. It is illegal to make an employee pay any part of your comp premium.

Who sets rates

NCCI files loss costs, and TDCI's Commissioner must consult the Advisory Council on Workers' Compensation before approving them, then rule within 90 days. Each insurer applies its own loss cost multiplier (LCM). TDCI's LCM list recorded as of October 5, 2026 shows filed multipliers ranging from 0.458 to 3.076.

Two orders shaped 2026 pricing:

• March 1, 2026: a 2.0% cut. On December 23, 2025, the Commissioner approved NCCI's proposed 2.0% overall decrease in voluntary loss costs. The Advisory Council had recommended a deeper 2.7% cut. TDCI said premiums would fall for most Tennessee businesses for the 13th year in a row.
• October 1, 2026: a 4.8% increase. On August 25, 2026, the Commissioner approved NCCI's June 2026 filing, which raises loss costs and assigned risk rates 4.8% above the March 1, 2026 level. The Advisory Council recommended approval.

Experience rating and safety

NCCI's class codes drive the rate for each type of work. If your experience modification factor is 1.20 or higher, the Bureau requires you to set up and run a workplace safety committee for as long as the mod stays at that level. The Bureau also runs a voluntary Drug-Free Workplace Program and says joining lowers premium costs.

If no insurer will write you

After two or more non-affiliated insurers turn you down, you can apply to the Tennessee Workers' Compensation Insurance Plan, which NCCI manages. Any licensed agent can place you. You must owe no undisputed premium to a past insurer and must follow reasonable safety recommendations. Ten companies currently handle plan policies. The Commissioner set the plan's LCM at 1.826 effective March 1, 2026, alongside a 1.1% cut in plan rates. You can leave the plan for a voluntary insurer at any time without a short-rate penalty.

Penalties for going uninsured

The Bureau's compliance specialists review businesses and send a Request for Information packet when they find possible violations. The penalty is 1.5 times the premium the business avoided, rising to three times for multiple violations within five years. Every penalized business is offered an interest-free payment plan and can ask for a hearing before an administrative law judge. Penalties go to the Uninsured Employers Fund, which can pay up to $40,000 to an eligible worker hurt while working for an illegally uninsured employer.

Your ongoing obligations

• Display the Posting Notice at each location. It must give a contact name, phone number and physical address for injury reports and coverage questions.
• Accept every injury report and give the worker a panel of physicians on Form C-42. Workers have 15 days to report an injury.
• Report injuries within one working day. File the First Report of Injury (Form C-20) with your insurer for any injury that leads to medical treatment away from your premises, time off work, a permanent impairment, or death. Self-insured employers report to their claims administrator.
• Send wages on Form C-41, showing the worker's gross pay for each of the 52 weeks before the injury.

Worked example: how the calculator estimates premium

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

We found no Tennessee loss cost for class 5551 (roofing) on an official public page. TDCI posts its approval orders and insurers' LCMs, not class-level loss costs, so every figure below is illustrative.

• Hypothetical roofing payroll: $180,000
• Illustrative loss cost, class 5551: $6.20 per $100 of payroll (not a Tennessee filed figure)
• Illustrative LCM: 1.50 (within TDCI's posted range, not any insurer's filing)
• Hypothetical experience mod: 1.20

Step by step

1. Payroll in hundreds: $180,000 / 100 = 1,800
2. Rate per $100: $6.20 x 1.50 = $9.30
3. Manual premium: 1,800 x $9.30 = $16,740.00
4. Apply the mod: $16,740.00 x 1.20 = $20,088.00

A mod of 1.20 would also trigger Tennessee's safety committee requirement. Your actual loss cost, your insurer's LCM, and the October 1, 2026 increase will change the result.

Frequently asked questions

Official sources

• TN Bureau of Workers' Compensation, Who Must Carry Insurance
• TN BWC, Construction coverage requirements
• TN BWC, Non-Construction coverage requirements
• TN BWC, Other Coverage Options
• TN BWC, How to Obtain Workers' Compensation Insurance
• TN BWC, How Rates for Insurance Premiums are Set
• TN BWC, Why Is Insurance Important?
• TN BWC, Exemption Registry
• TN BWC, Instructions for Initial Exemption Registration Application
• TN BWC, Compliance
• TN BWC, Uninsured Employers Fund
• TN BWC, Employer Responsibilities
• TN BWC, Reporting a Claim
• TN BWC, Required Posting Notice
• TN BWC, Safety Committees
• TDCI, Workers Compensation
• TDCI, How to Buy WC Insurance and Access the Tennessee Residual Market
• TDCI, Workers Compensation Loss Cost Multiplier Listing (recorded as of October 5, 2026)
• TDCI, Order Approving Loss Cost Filing, No. 25-64 (entered December 23, 2025)
• TDCI, Order Approving Assigned Risk Rate Filing and LCM, No. 26-03 (entered January 16, 2026)
• TDCI, Order Approving Loss Cost and Assigned Risk Rate Filing, No. 26-54 (entered August 25, 2026)
• TDCI news release, February 11, 2026

Sources accessed 2026-10-17.

This is general information, not legal advice. Confirm details with the Tennessee Bureau of Workers' Compensation, Department of Labor and Workforce Development.

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