What workers' comp costs roofing contractors in Hialeah, Florida

Roofing businesses in Miami-Dade County

According to County Business Patterns, 1,399 people worked at 200 roofing contractors (NAICS 238160) establishments in Miami-Dade County in 2023.

That is 9.1% of the 2,201 such establishments statewide, and the highest count among the nine counties that hold the ten cities in this guide series.

Divide their reported annual payroll by headcount and the average is about $39,520 per employee, the base your premium is calculated on.

Within Hialeah's own postal ZIP codes there were 34 roofing contractor establishments in 2023.

Of all construction businesses in Miami-Dade County, 3.0% are roofing contractor firms (200 of 6,754).

For roofing contractor firms, Miami-Dade County's average pay of $39,520 sits below Duval County ($46,770).

The Bureau of Labor Statistics counted 4,660 roofers in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach metro area in May 2024, at a median wage of $22.78 an hour, above the Florida median of $22.23.

At that metro median, one full-time worker earns about $47,390 a year, which adds roughly $3,200 of class 5551 premium.

2026 Florida class codes and rates

Rates are the 2026 Florida manual rates published by the FWCJUA, matching the standard filing approved by the Office of Insurance Regulation for policies effective on or after January 1, 2026.

How roofing contractors are classified

Every person on a roof crew sits in one class: 5551, Roofing — All Kinds. That covers shingle, tile, metal, modified-bitumen and single-ply work, new roofs and repairs alike. There is no lower-rated "repair only" roofing code in Florida, so a crew doing small leak calls carries the same manual rate as a crew re-roofing a warehouse. Office staff who never go on a job site can be split out to 8810 Clerical at $0.105 per $100, and that split is often the single largest lever on a roofer's premium. Owners who climb ladders and estimate on roofs do not qualify for the clerical rate.

At audit

• Auditors compare roofing payroll to permit history and material invoices, so a jump in squares installed with flat payroll invites questions about uninsured subs.
• Owners who estimate on roofs stay in 5551 for that time; only purely clerical staff move to 8810.

Permits and licensing in Hialeah

Roofing businesses working in Hialeah pull roofing permits through the City of Hialeah Building Department, and Florida law makes proof of workers' comp coverage or an exemption a condition of getting a building permit.

The City of Hialeah Building Department will not register a contractor without a workers' compensation certificate, or a state exemption, naming the City of Hialeah as certificate holder, along with a liability certificate and business tax receipts. County-licensed trades are reviewed by Miami-Dade County's Construction Trades Qualifying Board, and the county asks for proof of liability and workers' compensation insurance after board approval. Hialeah sits inside the Florida Building Code's High-Velocity Hurricane Zone, which governs how roofs, windows and exterior walls are built and inspected here.

Hialeah is one of the most Spanish-speaking cities in the United States, and much of its construction workforce runs on small, family-owned crews that sub for larger Miami-Dade contractors. That structure makes certificate tracking the main workers' comp issue here: a general contractor that hires a uninsured Hialeah sub picks up that sub's payroll at audit. The city's mix of older single-family homes, light industrial buildings along the Palmetto corridor and new mixed-use projects means one crew can work under several class codes in the same month. Hialeah runs its own water and sewer department, so underground work inside the city is coordinated with city utility staff. The Leah Arts District, a warehouse area turned into studios, restaurants and event spaces, has brought adaptive-reuse projects where old industrial buildings get new roofs, electrical services and storefronts. Around Hialeah Park, redevelopment and road projects bring commercial work to the east side of the city.

• Hialeah's industrial corridors along the east side of the city mix warehouse, light-manufacturing and residential jobs, so many crews split payroll between commercial and residential codes.
• High-Velocity Hurricane Zone rules mean more inspections per job for exterior work, and more site hours that count toward audited payroll.

Common claims for roofing contractors in Hialeah

Hialeah roofers do much of their work on older single-family homes, where HVHZ re-roof rules and product approvals add inspection steps to even small jobs. In the High-Velocity Hurricane Zone, roof assemblies need product approval and extra inspections, so crews spend more time on each roof, including more hours exposed at the edge.

• Falls from roof edges, ladders and openings, the claim type that drives the 5551 rate
• Heat illness on dark membrane and tile roofs in summer
• Back and shoulder strains from carrying bundles, tile and underlayment
• Burns from torch-down and hot-asphalt work
• Lacerations from metal panels, flashing and cutting tools

What to have ready for a Hialeah roofing quote

• Payroll for your Hialeah roofing work, split by class (5551) and with office staff listed separately
• Certificates or exemptions for every sub on your Hialeah jobs, checked in the Proof of Coverage database
• Three years of loss runs for the roofing business, plus your current experience modifier if you have one
• Recent permits pulled with the City of Hialeah Building Department, which show the volume and type of Hialeah work
• Any jobs planned outside Miami-Dade County or outside Florida this year, so the policy covers them

Questions from Hialeah roofing contractors