Lock and Security Equipment Contractor Insurance in California (C-28)

What the C-28 license covers

The CSLB’s definition

“A lock and security equipment contractor evaluates, sets-up, installs, maintains and repairs all doors and door assemblies, gates, locks and locking devices, panic and fire rated exit devices, manual and automatic operated gate and door closures and releases, jail and prison locking devices and permanently installed or built in safes and vaults.”

The injuries in this trade are moderate: ladders, door slabs, gate hardware and power tools. The bigger exposure is a lock, gate or access system that fails, followed by a break-in, a crushed hand at an automatic gate, or people trapped behind an exit device that won’t release. Those claims allege your installation caused the loss, so ask whether your policy includes errors and omissions coverage for system design and programming.

The C-28 coverage stack

General Liability — plus errors and omissions if you design or program access systems
Workers’ Compensation — rated by the work: 7605, 5107 or 5108
Commercial Auto — service vans carrying hardware and key stock
Inland Marine — tools, key machines and hardware awaiting installation
CSLB license bond — the $25,000 bond every C-28 license needs
Excess & Umbrella — schools, hospitals and public buildings often require more

C-28 requirements

What California requires of a C-28 licensee

Requirement	What applies to C-28 lock and security contractors
Contractor’s license bond	A $25,000 bond is required to activate and keep the license. LLC licensees also need a $100,000 LLC employee/worker bond. How the bond works
Workers’ compensation	Required now if you have even one employee. With no employees you can file a CSLB exemption, but that option ends for every classification on January 1, 2028. Check your requirement
General liability	Required by the CSLB only for LLC licensees (at least $1 million). General contractors and owners require it anyway, usually with additional insured status.

Workers’ comp class codes and 2026 rates

Class code	Description	Advisory rate per $100 payroll
7605	Security alarm, fire alarm or life safety systems installation, service or repair	$2.68
5107	Door, door frame or pre-glazed window installation, not overhead doors	$6.17
5108	Overhead door installation	$7.77

Source: WCIRB California, approved September 1, 2026 advisory pure premium rates and classification descriptions. These are benchmark loss costs, not quotes: each carrier files its own rates, and your experience mod and credits adjust the final premium.

The C-28 covers several kinds of work, and the WCIRB rates them differently. Electronic access control and security system work fits 7605, while door and frame installation is 5107 and overhead doors are 5108. The WCIRB has no class specifically for locksmith work, so a lock-and-key business is classified by what it mostly does. We confirm the code with the carrier before binding rather than guess.

Code 7605

$2.68 per $100 of payroll for security systems in 2026

System failure

liability can look like a professional error

WC by 2028

every C-28 needs a policy, employees or not

Common questions

C-28 coverage, answered

What is the workers’ comp class code for a lock and security contractor in California?

It depends on the work. Security and access control system installation fits 7605 ($2.68 per $100 of payroll in the WCIRB’s 2026 advisory rates), door installation is 5107 ($6.17), and overhead doors are 5108 ($7.77). The WCIRB has no locksmith-specific class, so a lock-and-key shop is classified by its main operations.

Do security contractors need errors and omissions insurance?

If you design, program or service access control and security systems, it’s worth having. When a system fails and a break-in or injury follows, the claim may allege a professional error that general liability alone may not cover.

Is general liability required for a C-28 license?

Only for LLC licensees, at least $1 million. Property managers, schools and general contractors will require it before you start.

Do lock and security contractors need workers’ comp with no employees?

A C-28 with no employees can file the CSLB exemption until January 1, 2028, when it ends for every classification.

Lock and Security Equipment Contractor Insurance in California

The CSLB’s definition

The C-28 coverage stack

What California requires of a C-28 licensee

Workers’ comp class codes and 2026 rates

C-28 coverage, answered

Get a C-28 quote that fits the work