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Electrician Insurance · C-10

Electrician insurance for the job and the license.

General liability, workers' compensation, tools and equipment, commercial auto and license bonds for California electrical contractors.

By Sam Alishahi · CA Insurance License #4348151 · Reviewed November 2026 · En español · How this page is researched

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How it works

Fire claims drive electrical pricing

An electrical contractor's biggest liability exposure is a fire traced back to their work, sometimes years after the job. Carriers price that risk based on the kind of work you do: residential service, new construction, commercial tenant improvements, or solar.

Workers' comp is required as soon as you hire anyone, and under SB 216 and SB 1455 all licensed contractors must carry it starting January 1, 2028. I set up both so you're covered now and ready before that deadline.

General liabilityProperty damage and injuries caused by your work, including completed jobs.
Workers' compRequired for employees now, and for all licensed contractors from January 1, 2028.
Tools and equipmentTools, testers and materials stolen or damaged on the job or in the van.
Commercial autoService vans and trucks used for work.

What I help with

Electrician situations I'm called for

GC or property manager needs a COI

Certificates with additional insured wording. See details

Hiring an apprentice

Workers' comp set up with the right class code. See details

Solar and battery work

Carriers that accept solar installation.

Tools stolen from the van

Tools and equipment coverage. See details

Preparing for 2028

Workers' comp before the requirement starts. The 2028 workers’ comp change

License bond

CSLB contractor license bonds. See details

Before you call

What underwriters will ask

Having these ready means I can go to market on the first call. The quote form asks for the same things, and anything you don’t know yet can wait.

Start the Quote Form

License: CSLB number and classifications.
Work: residential, commercial, industrial, solar or low voltage.
Payroll: employees, payroll and subcontractor costs.
Revenue: annual gross receipts.
Vehicles and tools: vans and estimated tool value.
History: current policies and loss runs.

C-10 or C-7: what your classification says

In California, the Contractors State License Board (CSLB) defines each trade in Title 16 of the California Code of Regulations. When I take an application, I compare the classification on your license with the work you describe, so it helps to know CSLB's wording:

C-10 Electrical. Places, installs, erects or connects any electrical wires, fixtures, appliances, apparatus, raceways, conduits, solar photovoltaic cells or any part of them that generate, transmit, transform or utilize electrical energy in any form or for any purpose.
C-7 Low Voltage Systems. Installs, services and maintains communication and low voltage systems that are energy limited and do not exceed 91 volts, such as telephone, sound, cable television, closed-circuit video, satellite dish antennas, instrumentation and temperature controls, and low voltage landscape lighting. CSLB says low voltage fire alarm systems are specifically not included.

If most of your work fits C-7, see low-voltage contractor insurance; PV installation is discussed on solar contractor insurance.

Under Business and Professions Code 7125, CSLB requires a current Certificate of Workers' Compensation Insurance or Certification of Self-Insurance on file in your business name, unless you have no employees and file a statement certifying that. The no-employee exemption is closed to C-8, C-20, C-22, C-39 and D-49 licenses; C-10 is not on that list. Under B&P 7125.2, failing to obtain or maintain required workers' comp suspends the license automatically, and it can be reinstated by showing proof of compliance. This version of 7125 remains in effect only until January 1, 2028; that change is on the 2028 workers' comp page, and the bond is on contractor license bonds.

Who on your crew must be certified

California Labor Code 108 adds a requirement for the people you employ. It defines electricians as everyone who connects electrical devices for a C-10 contractor, and it does not apply to electrical connections under 100 volt-amperes. The Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) answers the common questions in its FAQ:

A sole owner with the license in their own name does not need to be certified. A foreman who sometimes works with the tools does.
Work for a C-7 or C-45 (electric sign) contractor within the scope of that license, including incidental and supplemental work, does not require certification, even if the same contractor also holds a C-10.
There are five certifications: General Electrician; Residential Electrician; Fire/Life Safety Technician; Voice, Data, Video Technician; and Non-residential Lighting Technician.
Employing uncertified electricians can violate Labor Code 108.2, and CSLB enforces the law, which can mean administrative action against the licensee.

Someone still building hours registers as an electrician trainee under Labor Code 108.4. The trainee must have completed or be enrolled in an approved classroom curriculum, and you, as employer, attest that they work under the direct supervision of a certified electrician who supervises no more than one uncertified person. Registration renews every year with proof of classwork and on-the-job experience. An employer the division finds failed to provide adequate supervision can be barred from employing uncertified trainees in the future.

When I take an application, I ask how many of your field employees are certified, how many are registered trainees, and how you track their renewals.

Cal/OSHA electrical rules to have on paper

Workplace electrical safety rules vary by state. In California they are the Electrical Safety Orders in Title 8 of the California Code of Regulations, and the lockout rule sits in the General Industry Safety Orders. The sections your written procedures should line up with:

De-energized work (2320.4). Before work, an authorized person notifies everyone involved, locks the disconnecting means open (or uses another positive method), tags it, and blocks or dissipates stored energy such as capacitors. Locking can be skipped only where tagging procedures are used and the disconnect is accessible only to people instructed in them.
Energized work (2320.2). Work on exposed energized parts waits until responsible supervision has decided it must be done energized, the crew has been instructed on the techniques and hazards, and suitable protective equipment, such as approved insulated gloves or insulated tools, is provided and used. Approved insulated gloves must be worn above 250 volts to ground.
Lockout/tagout (3314). Covers cleaning, repairing, servicing, setting up and adjusting machinery and equipment. It calls for a written hazardous energy control procedure, an inspection of that procedure at least once a year that the employer certifies, and training documented under section 3203. When you service equipment at a customer's site, the on-site employer's lockout or tagout procedures are followed. For energized electrical systems, 3314 points to sections 2320.1 through 2320.9 or 2940 through 2945.

I ask contractors whether they have written safety procedures. A lockout procedure, the annual inspection certifications and the training records are what answer that.

Finished jobs and the completed operations aggregate

Claims from work you've already finished fall under their own part of a general liability policy, with their own limit. IRMI's explanation of how limits apply in the ISO commercial general liability form gives you what to look for on your declarations:

The products-completed operations hazard. It reaches bodily injury or property damage that occurs away from your premises and arises out of your work that has been completed.
Its own aggregate. The products-completed operations aggregate is the most the insurer pays during the policy period for damages arising out of that hazard. It applies independently of the general aggregate, so payments under one don't reduce the other. Check that your declarations list it as a separate figure.
The general aggregate. It applies to Coverage A damages other than products-completed operations, plus personal and advertising injury and medical payments.

When I review a renewal, I put both aggregates side by side with the limits your contracts ask for. If a GC or owner wants additional insured status on finished work, the endorsement forms are covered on contractor insurance and additional insured on a contractor policy.

Questions

Electrician insurance, answered

Do electricians need workers' comp in California?

If you have employees, yes. Starting January 1, 2028, all CSLB-licensed contractors must carry workers' compensation, with limited exceptions.

What does general liability cover for an electrician?

Claims that your work caused property damage or injury to others, such as a fire from a faulty connection. It doesn't cover your own tools or injuries to your employees.

Does solar work change my insurance?

Often. Some carriers exclude solar or roof-mounted work, so it needs to be disclosed and placed with a carrier that accepts it.

How much liability insurance do electricians carry?

Many carry $1 million per occurrence and $2 million aggregate, which general contractors and commercial clients commonly require. Larger contracts may require an umbrella.

Do out-of-state electricians need California certification?

Yes. DIR says electricians coming from out of state must be certified before they start working in California, with no grace period, and that electricians working for C-10 contractors should be certified regardless of how short the project is.

Do in-house electricians at a plant or school district need certification?

No. DIR says certification applies only to employees of C-10 licensed contractors, and Labor Code 108 also excludes electrical work ordinarily and customarily performed by stationary engineers.

Do you offer electrician insurance outside California?

Yes. Clients across the country send the same quote form. Sam Alishahi is licensed in all 50 states and Washington, DC and places policies there directly. The shopping across carriers works the same way. Rules, minimums and markets differ by state — see insurance requirements by state.

Official sources

Often placed alongside this

Coverage

Contractor insurance

Workers’ comp and liability that clear the contract.

See coverage Coverage

Workers’ comp insurance

Required coverage for California employers.

See coverage Coverage

Solar contractor insurance

Liability, workers' comp and equipment for solar installers.

See coverage Tool

2028 contractor workers’ comp check

Six questions and the rule that applies to your license.

Use the tool

Questions people ask: What is additional insured on a contractor policy? Do subcontractors need their own insurance in California? What is a certificate of insurance? Tools and equipment insurance for contractors

Also covered with this: Sign contractor insurance Low voltage contractor insurance Sign company insurance

By state: Insurance requirements by state

CSLB’s license file lists 29,067 active California licenses with the C-10 Electrical classification. 14,665 of them (50%) list a workers’ comp exemption, and the requirement extends to all contractors on January 1, 2028. Workers’ comp by trade and county.

Electrician insurance

Send your license number. I'll shop it.

Your CSLB number, the work you do and your revenue are enough to start.

Get a Quote Call (877) 711-4545

Alishahi Insurance · Saman Alishahi, independent insurance broker, California License #4348151. General information, not a quote or a promise of coverage; coverage depends on underwriting and the terms, conditions and exclusions of the policy actually issued.

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