What code 8380 covers
Typical duties
- Diagnosing and repairing engines, transmissions, brakes, steering and suspension
- Oil changes, fluid service and preventive maintenance
- Mounting, balancing and rotating tires
- Writing up repair orders and walking customers through estimates in the service bay
- Parts runs and shuttling customers in the shop’s vehicle
Operations included
- General mechanical repair garages
- Quick-lube and oil-change centers
- Tire, brake, muffler and alignment shops
- Service departments that operate as their own repair business
- Shop employees who drive customers or pick up parts
What code 8380 does not cover
- Collision repair, frame straightening and refinishing: 8393 Automobile Body Repair
- Gas stations, including those with a small service bay: 8381
- Towing and wrecker service: 7219
- Front-office staff in a separated area: 8810
- Salespeople who sell outside the shop: 8742
Code 8380 rate and cost context
The 2026 rate for 8380 is $1.669 per $100 of payroll, and it has fallen every year since 2022. Repair shops benefit from the statewide decreases because their claims are mostly strains, cuts and eye injuries rather than catastrophic losses.
The body shop code 8393 is filed at $1.183, lower than 8380. That surprises owners, but the code has to match the work: a shop that does mostly mechanical repair cannot report as a body shop to save premium, and the reverse is true too.
| Year | Rate per $100 |
|---|---|
| 2022 | $2.35 |
| 2023 | $2.05 |
| 2024 | $1.76 |
| 2025 | $1.72 |
| 2026 | $1.669 |
If you are placed in the FWCJUA
Florida’s residual market charges the voluntary rate plus a surcharge on the voluntary premium: 93% in Tier 1 and 183% in Tiers 2 and 3 for 2026. On this code that works out to about $3.22 (Tier 1) or $4.72 (Tiers 2–3) per $100 of payroll before any experience mod.
Example: estimating code 8380 premium
Say a four-bay repair shop has $300,000 of annual payroll for technicians, service writers and a parts driver in code 8380.
| Annual payroll in this code | $300,000 |
| Voluntary-market premium (rate × payroll ÷ 100) | $5,007 |
| FWCJUA Tier 1 (with 93% surcharge) | $9,664 |
| FWCJUA Tiers 2–3 (with 183% surcharge) | $14,170 |
Example only. Assumes no experience modification, schedule credits, expense constant or taxes. Minimum premium applies if the result is lower ($327 / FWCJUA $1,662).
Misclassification pitfalls for code 8380
Calling a mechanical shop a body shop
The lower 8393 rate is tempting, but the auditor classifies by the work shown on repair orders. If most invoices are mechanical, the payroll goes to 8380.
Writing a combined shop under one code without checking
A shop that does both mechanical and collision work is normally assigned one governing code based on the main business. Ask your carrier to document which code governs and why.
Service writers left in clerical
A service advisor who walks the lot, moves cars or goes into the bays is exposed to shop hazards and belongs in 8380, not 8810.
Tow truck added to a repair policy
If the shop runs its own wrecker for customers, ask how the carrier classifies it. A tow operation that also serves the public can be its own 7219 exposure.
Codes that sit next to 8380
- Code 8393: for collision repair, painting and body work on vehicles (Automobile Body Repair, 2026 rate $1.183).
- Code 8381: for gas stations, including small service bays.
- Code 7219: for towing customers’ vehicles as a service.
- Code 8810: for office staff in a separated area who do not enter the shop.
- Code 8742: for outside salespeople who visit fleet customers.
Payroll and audit notes for code 8380
Flat-rate and commission pay for technicians is payroll, along with hourly wages, spiffs and bonuses. Tool allowances paid as cash are generally treated as wages unless they are a documented reimbursement plan.
Uniform rental the shop pays to a vendor is not payroll. Cash paid to employees to buy their own uniforms usually is.
The auditor will look at repair orders to confirm the mix of mechanical and body work, so keep invoices for the policy year organized.
Who usually reports code 8380
- Independent mechanical repair garages
- Quick-lube and oil-change franchises
- Tire and brake centers
- Transmission and muffler specialists
- Fleet maintenance shops that repair other companies’ vehicles
Code 8380 questions
Is auto body repair code 8380 or 8393?
In Florida, collision and body repair is 8393, Automobile Body Repair. Code 8380 is the auto service and repair center code for mechanical work.
What is the 2026 Florida rate for code 8380?
The 2026 OIR-approved NCCI rate is $1.669 per $100 of payroll, effective January 1, 2026. FWCJUA policies add a 93% or 183% surcharge.
Does a tire shop use code 8380?
Shops that mount, repair and balance tires on customers’ vehicles generally fall under 8380.
Can the service advisor be classified as clerical?
Only if they stay in a physically separated office and never enter the shop or move vehicles. Most service advisors do, so they stay in 8380.
Sources
- NCCI: Summary of the Florida Workers Compensation Rate Filing Recommendation Effective January 1, 2026
- Florida Office of Insurance Regulation: Commissioner approves 6.9% workers’ compensation rate decrease effective January 1, 2026 (Nov. 17, 2025)
- Florida Workers’ Compensation Joint Underwriting Association (FWCJUA): Rates (2022–2026 rate tables and minimum premiums)
- FWCJUA: Bulletins (Bulletin 25-9: 2026 Tier 1, 2 and 3 surcharges)
- NCCI: Summary of the Florida Workers Compensation Rate Filing Recommendation Effective January 1, 2027 (filed Aug. 21, 2026)
Facts checked October 12, 2026.