It depends on your state and how your business is set up. In most states a sole proprietor or partner is left out automatically and can choose to opt in, while a corporate officer is covered automatically and must file a form to opt out. Whether you should is another question. If you work in the field, or a general contractor requires it, covering yourself is often the right call. Who this is for: owners working out whether their own name belongs on the workers comp policy.
The short version
- The default depends on your business type. Sole proprietors and partners are usually out unless they opt in; officers are usually in unless they opt out.
- Several states do not let a construction sole proprietor or partner opt out at all.
- Being left out means no medical or lost-wage coverage for your own injury.
- Many general contractors require owners to be covered, or to sign a waiver form, before you can start.
- Including yourself costs your rated payroll times your rate: a flat state amount for sole proprietors and partners, actual pay within state limits for officers.
What does my state do by default?
Every state has its own rule, but most follow the same pattern. Your state guide has the exact rule, the form, and any ownership requirement.
| How your business is organized | Usual default in most states | Your choice |
|---|---|---|
| Sole proprietor | Not covered, but several states treat a sole proprietor doing construction work as an employee who cannot opt out | You can usually opt in |
| Partner in a partnership | Not covered, with the same construction exception | You can usually opt in |
| Officer of a corporation | Covered | You can usually opt out by filing a state form, sometimes only if you own a minimum share |
| Member of a limited liability company | Varies | Some states treat members like partners, some like officers |
State guides: corporations in Massachusetts, limited liability companies in California, and workers comp in Texas, where the rules are different from most states.
What does it cost to include myself?
Your rated payroll times the rate for your job category (the class code). That rated payroll is often not your real wages. Sole proprietors, partners, and LLC members who opt in are usually rated on a flat amount the state sets. Corporate officers are usually rated on their actual pay, but only between a state minimum and a state maximum, so very low pay is charged up to the minimum and high pay only up to the maximum. The figures below are illustrative, using $60,000 of rated owner payroll.
| What you do most days | Illustrative rate per $100 | Illustrative cost to include yourself |
|---|---|---|
| Roofing | $25.00 | About $15,000 a year |
| Framing | $8.00 | About $4,800 a year |
| Electrical or plumbing | $5.00 | About $3,000 a year |
| Office work only, in a separate office | $0.40 | About $240 a year |
Why would I include myself if I do not have to?
- You work in the field. Workers comp pays medical bills, a weekly check while you cannot work, and a payment for a permanent injury.
- Your health plan may not pay. Some health plans exclude injuries that happen at work.
- A general contractor requires it. Many subcontracts require every person on site, owners included, to be covered.
- Your family depends on your income. If you have no disability insurance, the weekly check matters more than the premium.
When does leaving myself out make sense?
When you work in an office, away from the shop and job sites, the saving is small and the risk is low. When you work in the field, leaving yourself out only makes sense if all three of these are true:
- You have health and disability coverage that pays for work injuries.
- None of your customers require owners to be covered.
- The saving is large enough to matter.
Read do sole proprietors need workers comp? for the one-person business version of this question.
What do general contractors require?
Most subcontracts say every worker on the project must be covered, and many name owners specifically. Their insurer checks this at its year-end payroll review, and if you were on site with no coverage they can be charged for your labor. Some states have a waiver form an owner can sign so they are not charged. Send the insurance section of the contract to your broker before you decide.
How do I include or exclude myself?
- Confirm your business type and your state's default rule.
- To change the default, sign your state's election or exclusion form and give it to the insurer. Some states also require filing with the state. In North Dakota, Ohio, Washington, and Wyoming you deal with the state fund rather than an insurer, and owners are usually outside the system unless they buy elective owner coverage.
- The change takes effect when it is accepted, not before.
- Check that your certificate of insurance (the one page proof of coverage) shows the right status, because general contractors read it.
The workers comp overview explains the rest of the policy.
What this looks like in real life
Illustrative example. It is typical of what we see and is not a promise of how any specific situation would be handled.
The setup: A husband and wife own a heating and cooling corporation in Arizona. He installs equipment with two technicians; she runs the office from a separate room at the front of the shop. As corporate officers, both were covered by default. For this illustration each officer's pay is rated at $60,000, inside the state's officer minimum and maximum, and the heating and cooling rate is $6.00 per $100.
What went wrong: The insurer rated both officers at the heating and cooling rate, about $3,600 each. To save $7,200, they filed exclusion forms for both. Three months later a general contractor's subcontract required every person on site, including officers, to be covered.
What it cost: Illustrative math: the husband had to be added back in the middle of the policy year at about $3,600 a year, and the start date slipped a week while the paperwork caught up.
The fix: The right answer was different for each of them. He stayed covered at the heating and cooling rate. She was included too, but rated as office staff at about $0.40 per $100, or about $240 a year.
Frequently asked questions
Q: Do I need to include myself in workers comp if I own the business?
It depends on your state and business type. Sole proprietors and partners are usually out unless they opt in, and corporate officers are usually in unless they file a form to opt out.
Q: I am a sole proprietor with no employees. Do I need workers comp at all?
In most states, not by law. Construction is the exception to watch: some states, Florida among them, treat a construction sole proprietor as an employee who must be covered. Many general contractors require it as well.
Q: I own a limited liability company. Am I covered automatically?
It depends on your state. Some states treat members like partners, who are out by default. Others treat them like officers, who are in by default.
Q: Can a general contractor make me cover myself even if my state does not?
Yes. A contract can require more than the law does. Many subcontracts require every person on site to be covered, and the general contractor's insurer checks it.
Q: Does including myself raise the price for my employees?
No. Adding your own payroll adds premium for you, but it does not change the rate charged on your employees' payroll.
Q: If I exclude myself, does that affect my employees' coverage?
No. The exclusion applies only to you. Your employees stay fully covered and their payroll is rated as usual.
How Morrow helps
Morrow is a licensed independent commercial insurance brokerage that works with contractors and trades every day. Sorting out whether an owner should be on the policy, in their state and for their customers, is one of the first questions we answer for new contractor clients.
- Free contract review. Send us the contract or bid documents and we mark up the insurance section in plain English, whether or not you buy anything from us.
- Free, instant certificates. Clients issue their own certificates of insurance online in about a minute, any hour, any day, at no charge.
- Markets you cannot reach online. One application, shopped across many insurance companies for general liability, workers comp, auto, umbrella, and pollution coverage.
One more thing. This article is general information and is not legal advice or a statement of coverage. Your contract and your policy wording control in every case. Requirements vary by customer, by state, and by insurance company, so have a licensed advisor review your own contract and your own policy before relying on any of it.
Last updated: Reviewed by the Morrow commercial lines team. Last updated September 2026.