Delaware Workers Compensation: Employer Requirements
Delaware requires workers compensation from the first employee. Exemptions, where to buy it, the 10-day injury report, and what going uninsured costs.
Delaware Workers Compensation
Who has to carry it, who sits outside it, where the policy comes from, and the deadlines that decide whether a claim is handled or held against you
A landscaping owner near Milford asked me whether the man he had brought on for a two-week push counted. He had read that casual labor sits outside workers compensation, decided a short job qualified, and left the helper off the policy. The helper tore a shoulder on day nine.
He had found a real exclusion and read half of it. Delaware does put casual employment outside coverage, but only when the work is also outside the regular course of the employer's trade or business. A helper on a landscaping crew is the regular course of a landscaping business. The length of the job never mattered.
So this page is the Delaware rule sheet: the trigger, the exclusions, where the policy comes from, the deadlines, and what the state does to employers who skip coverage. How workers compensation works as a product is covered in our general workers compensation guide. Hiring, wages and leave in this state live in the Delaware HR compliance guide.
Who Has to Carry Coverage
One employee triggers the obligation. Title 19, Section 2306 of the Delaware Code applies the workers compensation chapter to the employer and employee in any employment in which 1 or more employees are engaged, and Section 2372 then requires every employer the chapter reaches to insure that liability with a carrier approved by the Department, or to prove it can pay claims directly.
The Division of Industrial Affairs states the rule for employers without the statutory wrapper. Its employer guidance on who must carry coverage says almost every employer with one or more employees is required to carry workers compensation insurance, with only limited exceptions in state law, and that coverage has to be in place before anyone starts work.
Full-time, part-time, seasonal and temporary staff all count the same. There is no small employer exemption to grow out of and no grace period to hire into. An out-of-state business with people working in Delaware needs coverage that applies here, through a Delaware policy, a Delaware rider on an out-of-state policy, or approved self-insurance. A policy issued in another state does not travel by itself.
Who Sits Outside Coverage
Delaware handles owners and edge cases through the definition of employee plus two applicability sections, not through a headcount. The default flips depending on how the business is organized: proprietors and partners start outside coverage, while corporate officers and LLC members start inside it. Every exemption below runs through Title 19, Chapter 23, Subchapter I.
| Worker | How Delaware treats them |
|---|---|
| Sole proprietor | Outside the chapter. May elect coverage for themselves under Section 2308(b) |
| Partner in a partnership | Outside the chapter. May elect coverage the same way a sole proprietor does |
| Immediate family of a proprietor or partner | Inside coverage by default. A family member may be exempted only by agreeing to it in writing (Section 2308(c)) |
| Executive officer of a corporation | Inside coverage. As many as 8 officers who are stockholders may be exempted if the corporation and those officers agree in writing (Section 2308(a)) |
| Member of an LLC | Inside coverage. As many as 8 members may be exempted on the same written agreement basis as corporate officers |
| Casual employee | Outside coverage only when the work is casual AND outside the regular course of the employer’s trade or business. Casual means not over 2 weeks, or total pay for the job not over $100 (Section 2301) |
| Household or casual worker in a private home | Outside the chapter while earning under $750 in cash in any 3-month period from a single private home. At $750 or more the exclusion stops applying (Section 2307(a)) |
| Farm laborer | Outside the chapter unless the farm employer carries insurance covering them (Section 2307(b)) |
| Spouse or minor child of a farm employer | Outside the definition of employee unless a bona fide employee named in an endorsement to the farm employer’s policy (Section 2301) |
| Outworker | A person given articles or materials to work on in their own home, or on premises the employer does not control or manage, is outside the definition of employee (Section 2301) |
| Sports official at an unpaid event | Not an employee under this title when the players are not compensated (Section 2301) |
| Independent contractor | No blanket exclusion in the workers compensation chapter. In construction, Delaware presumes an employment relationship instead (Title 19, Chapter 35) |
The officer exemption is a written agreement, not a checkbox. As many as 8 officers who are stockholders of a corporation, or as many as 8 members of an LLC, may be exempted when the company and those individuals agree to it in writing. Without that signed agreement the officer is a covered employee whose payroll belongs in the premium calculation.
The family rule catches more small businesses than the officer rule does. Members of the immediate family of a sole proprietor or partner are inside coverage by default under Section 2308(c). A spouse who runs the office or an adult child who drives the truck is covered unless that person signs an exemption, and owners routinely assume the opposite.
Contractors and Classification
Calling someone a contractor does not settle whether Delaware treats them as your employee. The workers compensation chapter contains no blanket independent contractor exclusion, so the question falls back on the facts of the relationship and on the definition of employee in Section 2301.
Construction is governed by a separate and much harder statute. The Workplace Fraud Act at Title 19, Chapter 35 applies only to the construction services industry, and it presumes an employer and employee relationship whenever work is performed for pay unless the employer proves to the Department that the individual is an independent contractor or an exempt person. The presumption starts against you and you carry the burden of moving it.
The penalties there dwarf the workers compensation ones. Section 3505 sets a civil penalty of not less than $5,000 and not more than $20,000 for each violation, rising to not less than $20,000 and not more than $50,000 for retaliation, and a repeat violator within two years faces an administrative penalty of $20,000 for each employee plus possible debarment from public work for five years. An employer that fails to produce requested books and records within 30 days may be subject to a stop work order. Our guide to worker misclassification covers how these tests are applied in practice.
Before a crew starts, confirm the coverage rather than trusting a certificate that was emailed to you. The Office of Workers Compensation runs a public employer look-up so you can check whether a business shows an active Delaware policy, and insurance lapses quietly enough that a certificate issued in spring proves nothing about a job in autumn.
Where You Buy the Policy
Delaware is a competitive insurance market, not a monopolistic state fund state. The state's Business First Steps guidance on workers compensation says employers may purchase coverage from any insurance carrier or agency licensed to write in Delaware, so this is bought and priced the way other business insurance is.
An employer that cannot get a quote in the voluntary market is not stuck. The same state guidance directs those employers to the Delaware Compensation Rating Bureau to be placed in the assigned risk and residual market, which is the mechanism a new business or one with a rough loss history uses to get insured at all.
What Self-Insurance Actually Takes
Self-insurance is the third door and a poor fit for most small employers. Section 2372 requires furnishing the Department satisfactory proof of the employer's financial ability to pay compensation directly, in the amount and manner and when due, and the Department or the Industrial Accident Board may require the deposit of an acceptable security, indemnity or bond to secure those liabilities. Once approved, the Department issues a certificate.
Approval also comes with an ongoing duty that trips people up. When a self-insurer enters into an agreement to pay compensation or has an award entered against it, Section 2373 requires depositing the full liability with a savings bank or trust company, and failing to make that deposit within 30 days terminates the right to self-insure. FirstHR is an HR platform, not an insurer or a broker, so we do not sell any of this. We only get asked which door to walk through.
One credit is worth knowing about. Section 2379 creates a workplace safety program administered by the Insurance Commissioner, with inspections performed by an independent safety expert company under contract to the Department of Insurance, and a premium credit calculated from the employer's credibility factor. The formula is scheduled to increase from 20 percent to 40 percent of that factor on December 1, 2026.
Posting Rules and New Hires
One notice has to be on the wall and nothing has to be handed to a new hire. Section 2306 requires the employer to keep a summary of the workers compensation chapter, approved by the Department, posted in a conspicuous and accessible location in or about the premises or place of employment and where employees normally pass.
You do not have to design that summary. The same section says employers shall be furnished copies by the Department on request without charge, and the Office of Workers Compensation supplies the poster. Put it where people actually pass, not inside a manager's office. The wage side of the same board is covered in our Delaware minimum wage page.
Nothing in the workers compensation chapter requires a pamphlet or packet at hire, which surprises employers who expect one. What the chapter does require is a document after an injury: Section 2313 says the employer shall provide a copy of the report of injury to the employee upon completion of the report.
Construction employers carry the one real handout rule, and it lives in the Workplace Fraud Act rather than in the workers compensation chapter. Section 3511 requires giving each individual classified as an independent contractor or exempt person written notice of that classification at the time of hire. Skipping it costs an administrative penalty of $500 for each individual, and the statute treats the omission as evidence of a knowing violation.
The Reporting Clock
Two clocks run at once, and they are set differently. The employee has 90 days from the accident to tell you about it, and you have 10 days from learning about it to tell the state. The employee deadline is generous, the employer deadline is not, and the employer deadline is the one that carries a fine.
| Who | What they file | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Employee | Tells the employer about a work accident | Within 90 days of the accident, unless the employer already has actual knowledge (Section 2341) |
| Employee | Gives written notice of an occupational disease | Within 6 months of first knowing the disability was or could have been caused by the job (Section 2342) |
| Employer | Files the First Report of Occupational Injury or Disease with the Office of Workers’ Compensation and the carrier | Within 10 days after knowledge of the accident (Section 2313) |
| Employer | Gives the injured employee a copy of that report | On completion of the report (Section 2313) |
| Employer or carrier | Notifies the Department and the claimant in writing whether the claim is accepted or denied | Within 15 days of receiving knowledge of the injury (Section 2362) |
| Employer | Files a supplemental report | When the injured employee’s disability ends (Section 2313) |
| Employer | Files evidence of insurance compliance with the Department | Annually, or as often as the Department requires (Section 2374) |
| Insurance carrier | Tells the Department that a policy was canceled, lapsed or terminated | Within 14 days (Section 2374) |
| Employee | Files the claim petition after an accident | Within 2 years of the accident (Section 2361) |
| Employee | Files an occupational disease petition | Within 1 year of first knowing the disability came from the job (Section 2361) |
Late employee notice is not automatically fatal to a claim. Section 2341 says that unless the employer has actual knowledge of the injury, or notice is given within 90 days, no compensation is due until such notice is given or knowledge is obtained. That wording delays benefits rather than ending the claim, which is why a supervisor who hears about a sore back in March and writes nothing down can still be dealing with it in autumn.
The 15-day acceptance or denial notice under Section 2362 is the deadline small employers overlook most often, because it usually falls to the carrier and nobody checks that it happened. If the Industrial Accident Board finds the employer or its carrier failed that duty, it assesses a fine of not less than $500 and not more than $2,500.
What Going Without Coverage Costs
Delaware prices the penalty off the premium you avoided, then multiplies it. Section 2374 sets a civil penalty equal to the premium for the insurance not purchased times 3 for an employer that had coverage until the default, and for an employer with no coverage history the base is the most expensive policy premium actually charged by any carrier doing business in the state, again times 3.
| Exposure | What it means |
|---|---|
| Three times the premium you skipped | For an employer that was insured until the default, the penalty equals the premium for the insurance not purchased times 3, based on the last premium rate the carrier charged, for a 1-year period |
| Three times the most expensive policy on the market | For an employer with no history of coverage, the base is the most expensive policy premium actually charged by any carrier doing business in the state, times 3, for a 1-year period |
| $10 per employee per day | Assessed for continuing refusal or neglect, and never less than $250 for each day the employer stays uninsured |
| An injunction against operating | After 30 days in default the employer may be enjoined by the Court of Chancery from carrying on business while the default continues |
| Loss of the usual defenses | The injured worker may claim compensation or sue for damages, and the employer cannot argue that the employee was negligent, assumed the risk, or was hurt by a fellow employee’s negligence |
| Money goes to the injured worker | Assessments and fines collected are deposited in the Workers’ Compensation Fund and disbursed to pay the claims of employees affected by the failure to insure |
| Late injury reports | A separate fine of not less than $100 nor more than $250 for each offense, assessed by the Industrial Accident Board |
| Late accept or deny notice | A fine of not less than $500 and not more than $2,500 after a Board hearing |
Enforcement in Delaware does not usually arrive as an inspector taping a notice to your door. It runs through the Department, through the carrier reporting a cancellation within 14 days, and ultimately through the Court of Chancery, which may enjoin an employer that has been in default 30 days from carrying on business at all. That is slower than a stop-work order and considerably harder to argue with.
The exposure that actually ends small companies is the loss of the usual defenses. An uninsured employer is liable to injured employees either for compensation under the chapter or in an action at law for damages, and in that lawsuit it is no defense that the employee was negligent, assumed the risk of the injury, or was hurt by a fellow employee's negligence. The statute that normally caps your downside stops applying at the exact moment you needed it. How coverage gets priced and reconciled afterward sits in our guide to the workers compensation premium audit.
What to Do the Day Someone Gets Hurt
Run the same sequence every time, and write down the times. Most Delaware disputes turn on when the employer learned about the injury, and that fact is usually settled by whatever a supervisor wrote in the first hour.
The step small employers skip is the third one. Someone mentions a sore shoulder on a Tuesday, nobody records it, and two months later the argument is about whether notice ever happened. Keeping incident records, notices and acknowledgments in one system instead of in a supervisor's memory is exactly the sort of quiet recurring task FirstHR was built to hold for teams without a dedicated HR person.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a Delaware business need workers compensation with only one employee?
Yes. The chapter applies to any employment in which 1 or more employees are engaged, and the Division of Industrial Affairs tells employers that almost every business with one or more employees must carry coverage before anyone starts work. Part-time, seasonal and temporary staff count. An out-of-state employer with people working in Delaware needs coverage that applies here, not simply a policy issued somewhere else.
Can the owner stay off the policy?
It depends on the entity. Sole proprietors and partners are outside the chapter and may elect coverage if they want it. Executive officers of a corporation and members of an LLC are inside coverage, and as many as 8 of them may be exempted only by written agreement with the company. Immediate family members of a proprietor or partner are inside coverage unless that individual signs an exemption of their own.
How fast does the employer have to report an injury?
Within 10 days after learning about the accident. The First Report of Occupational Injury or Disease goes to the Office of Workers Compensation and to the carrier, regardless of how minor the injury appears, and the employee gets a copy once it is completed. Missing it runs $100 to $250 per offense. Separately, the employer or carrier has 15 days to tell the Department and the claimant whether the claim is accepted or denied.
What happens to an employer with no coverage?
A civil penalty of three times the premium not purchased, measured against the last rate charged or against the most expensive policy on the market for an employer that never carried coverage. Continuing refusal adds $10 per day per employee with a $250 daily floor. After 30 days the Court of Chancery may enjoin the business from operating, and the injured worker gains the right to sue for damages with the usual employer defenses stripped away.
Where does the policy come from?
Any insurance carrier or agency licensed to write workers compensation in Delaware, the assigned risk pool through the Delaware Compensation Rating Bureau if the voluntary market declines you, or self-insurance approved by the Department after proof of financial ability and possibly a security deposit. Delaware runs no monopolistic state fund, so employers shop this coverage normally. FirstHR does not sell insurance and has no stake in which route you take.
Which notice has to be posted?
A Department-approved summary of the workers compensation chapter, kept in a conspicuous and accessible location where employees normally pass. The Department furnishes copies free on request. No workers compensation document has to be handed to a new hire, though construction employers must give anyone classified as an independent contractor or exempt person written notice of that classification at hire, at $500 per individual missed.
Are farm laborers and household workers covered?
Farm laborers are outside the chapter unless the farm employer carries insurance covering them, and the spouse and minor children of a farm employer are outside the definition of employee unless named in an endorsement to the policy. Household and casual workers in a private home are outside the chapter only while earning under $750 in cash in any 3-month period from a single household. Past that figure, the exclusion stops applying.