Tennessee Workers’ Comp Insurance
CompShield is licensed to write workers’ comp directly in Tennessee, License #3001764214, and we’re an independent agency comparing real carriers, not a single-carrier storefront. Tennessee’s logistics and distribution sector, anchored by FedEx’s Memphis hub, alongside real automotive manufacturing and healthcare bases, mean the businesses we work with here carry genuine, specific risk.
Tennessee sets a five-employee threshold for most industries, but construction and coal mining are different, coverage is required starting at just one employee, including the business owners themselves.
Construction and Coal Mining Have a Stricter Rule
Tennessee requires coverage for non-construction employers with five or more employees, sole proprietors, LLC members, and partners aren’t counted toward that total, but full-time corporate officers are. Construction and coal mining are held to a stricter standard, coverage is required starting at just one employee, including the business owners themselves, not just hired staff.
Source: Tennessee Bureau of Workers’ Compensation, Who Must Carry Insurance
Up to Three Times Your Avoided Premium
Tennessee’s civil penalty for operating uninsured runs 1.5 times the employer’s avoided annual premium, rising to three times for a repeat violation within five years. The state’s Uninsured Employers Fund covers injured workers at uninsured businesses, capped at $40,000 total between temporary disability and medical costs, then pursues the employer for reimbursement.
Source: Tennessee Bureau of Workers’ Compensation, Compliance
Tennessee Is Not a Monopolistic State
Tennessee allows private carriers to write workers’ comp, unlike the four monopolistic states, Ohio, North Dakota, Washington, and Wyoming, where coverage has to come through a state fund. Tennessee uses NCCI for its rating framework, which is exactly where an independent agent comparing real carrier options adds value.
How Much Does Workers’ Comp Cost in Tennessee?
Tennessee’s logistics, automotive, and healthcare-heavy economy, anchored by FedEx, Nissan, and HCA, means rates for those specific classifications reflect real, documented risk differences. The formula behind your real number is the same regardless of trade:
- Payroll. Your total insurable payroll, starting at employee one for construction and coal mining, or employee five for most other industries.
- Class code rate. Logistics, automotive manufacturing, and construction classifications reflect Tennessee’s real economic mix and are rated accordingly.
- Experience mod. Compares your claims history to similar Tennessee businesses in your class code.
We’ll run the real number against your actual payroll and classification, not a generic Tennessee average.
Tennessee Workers’ Comp, Answered
Workers’ Comp by Trade in Tennessee
Logistics, automotive manufacturing, and healthcare anchor Tennessee’s economy. Here’s where we focus in-state.
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