Panama City wants the electrical permit issued before the work starts. FPL still owns the meter. The shop on East Avenue prints an EC number.
The city inspector will not own the FPL seal. FPL will not print the Harrison Avenue electrical permit. Those two systems do not match. A helper with a van cannot stand in for either one.
What the utilities actually wrote
Most Panama City bills are FPL. Confirm the logo on the bill before anyone prices the job.
Start with the Project Portal job aid. Only FPL is authorized to disconnect service conductors going to the home.
Customers can self-schedule a residential disconnect and reconnect for single-phase services at or under 320 amps.
All electrical work involving a meter enclosure requires an electrical inspection by the inspecting authority before FPL re-energizes the service.
Inspections must be submitted to FPL by 1 p.m. Eastern so same-day reconnect is possible.
The Electric Service Standards add a second path. FPL normally performs both the disconnect and the reconnect. A licensed and qualified electrical contractor may disconnect an overhead single-phase service of 300 amps or less only when FPL approves it, the attachment point stays intact, no FPL locking device is on the socket, and a reconnect appointment is already scheduled. That exception is not a homeowner meter-pull path.
FPL does not publish a guaranteed power-off hour count.
Permits in Panama City and in Bay County
Inside the city, start at Building Services, 501 Harrison Avenue. The phone is 850-872-3025.
Who pulls the permit matters. Permits must be issued before a project begins. That includes installations or alterations of electrical systems. Owning the home does not mean you should pull the permit and then hire someone under your name.
Lynn Haven, Panama City Beach, and unincorporated Bay County file at their own counters. A quote that only says “we handle the permit” should name the city on the address.
Price, without inventing one
Two Florida contractor pages publish panel bands and do not hide the split.
A Naples shop’s cost guide prints FPE, Zinsco, or Challenger replacement at $3,200 to $5,200. Stevenson’s Palm Coast page prints FPE, Zinsco, or Challenger replacement at $2,200 to $3,000. Neither shop’s service list reaches the Panhandle. Both bands come from peninsula markets, so treat them as a statewide comparison, not a Bay County price. Those two systems do not match. We will not average them. We are not inventing a Harrison Avenue midpoint from either system.
Florida license lookup is public. Ask for the EC number and check it before you sign. One shop advertises this work on their own site and prints a license number. Whittaker’s homepage FAQ names Federal Pacific and Zinsco. The shop’s own site prints EC13007801. They write daily work from 901 N East Ave A5. They are listed for the panel letter, not as a Bay County directory.
Directory-only shops are omitted. A page that names these brands and does not print a Florida EC number is not a listing. The listed shop is not affiliated with Panel Letter.
What to hand the carrier
The useful packet is the closed City of Panama City, Lynn Haven, or Bay County electrical permit, the passed electrical inspection, an invoice with the license number that was on the permit, and photos if the letter asks. If your electrician produces a load calculation or panel schedule, send that too. We did not find a carrier page that publishes a single statewide sticker form. Ask the agent what they will actually open.
Typical replacement cost
One Naples shop and one Palm Coast shop publish Florida panel bands that do not match. We are not inventing a Harrison Avenue midpoint from them
$3,200 to $5,200
FPE, Zinsco, or Challenger replacement printed by a Naples shop
Their Naples cost guide. A Palm Coast shop prints FPE, Zinsco, or Challenger replacement at $2,200 to $3,000. Those two systems do not match. We will not average them. We are not inventing a Harrison Avenue midpoint from either system.
Source: Naples Panel Upgrades$2,200 to $3,000
FPE, Zinsco, or Challenger replacement printed by a Palm Coast shop
Their Palm Coast panel-upgrade page. This is not the Naples shop’s $3,200 to $5,200 FPE line. Those two systems do not match. We will not average them.
Source: Stevenson's Electric Service Co.
Permit
City of Panama City Building Services
Who pulls it: Building Services sits at 501 Harrison Ave, Panama City, FL 32401. The published phone is 850-872-3025. Permit questions go to building@panamacity.gov. Applications go through Cloudpermit. Lynn Haven, Panama City Beach, and unincorporated Bay County are not the Harrison Avenue file.
The permits page is blunt. Permits must be issued before a project begins. That includes installations or alterations of electrical systems. The 2026 fee schedule prices electrical new work, additions, and alterations at $0.65 per $1,000 of valuation. The published minimum is $40. Florida Statute 489.103 still makes the owner-builder path an in-person file. A quote that only says we handle the permit should name Panama City, Lynn Haven, or Bay County on the address. Florida electrical-contractor advertising is the EC number. Ask for the EC they will put on the Building Services file.
Utility coordination
FPL on most Panama City bills
Who disconnects: FPL’s Project Portal job aid is blunt. Only FPL is authorized to disconnect service conductors going to the home. Customers can self-schedule a residential disconnect and reconnect for single-phase services at or under 320 amps. All electrical work involving a meter enclosure requires an electrical inspection by the inspecting authority before FPL re-energizes the service. Inspections must be submitted to FPL by 1 p.m. Eastern so same-day reconnect is possible. The Electric Service Standards add a second path. FPL normally performs both the disconnect and the reconnect. A licensed and qualified electrical contractor may disconnect an overhead single-phase service of 300 amps or less only when FPL approves it, the attachment point stays intact, no FPL locking device is on the socket, and a reconnect appointment is already scheduled. That exception is not a homeowner meter-pull path.
Outage window: FPL does not publish a guaranteed power-off hour count for a residential panel swap.
Confirm the logo on the bill before anyone prices the job. Most Panama City addresses are FPL, the company that absorbed Gulf Power. Some Bay County roads can be a cooperative. Those are different disconnect desks. A like-for-like panel swap still needs the city or county inspection and that utility ticket. A service-size change is still the company’s disconnect and reconnect, not a helper cutting the seal.
What to hand the insurer
- Closed City of Panama City, Lynn Haven, or Bay County electrical permit
- Passed electrical inspection
- FPL reconnect record if the job needed one
- Invoice showing the Florida EC number used on the permit
- Photos of the old and new panel if the carrier’s letter asks for them
- Load calculation or panel schedule if the electrician produced one
Ask your agent for the exact list. Carriers do not publish a single national checklist.
Electricians who advertise this job
A shop is listed only if it advertises Federal Pacific, Zinsco, or insurance-driven panel replacement on its own site and prints a license number there. Trade-association locators already exist. We will not pad this list. Verify the license before you hire.
To get introduced, use the quote form on this page. We do not send you to the shop from here.
Whittaker Electric, Inc.
Panama City, FL
Published license: EC13007801 (Florida DBPR Electrical Contractors Licensing Board)
Own homepage FAQ that names Federal Pacific and Zinsco panels and insurance eligibility, backed by License #EC13007801 printed on the shop’s own site.
How this page was built
Compiled by Panel Letter on 2026-10-10 from the public pages below. If a fact was not on a cited page, it is marked as unverified in the copy. This is a research guide, not a bid.
- Whittaker Electric, Licensed electricians in Panama City
Homepage FAQ names Federal Pacific or Zinsco and insurance eligibility. Prints License #EC13007801. Shop at 901 N East Ave A5. Phone (850) 763-6296.
- Naples Panel Upgrades, Electrical panel upgrade cost guide for Naples
Prints FPE / Zinsco / Challenger replacement at $3,200 to $5,200. Cost source only here.
- Stevenson's Electric, Electrical panel upgrades in Palm Coast
Prints FPE / Zinsco / Challenger replacement at $2,200 to $3,000. Cost source only here.
- City of Panama City, Building Services
501 Harrison Ave. Phone 850-872-3025. building@panamacity.gov.
- City of Panama City, Permits, Inspections and Certificates
Permits must be issued before a project begins. That includes installations or alterations of electrical systems.
- City of Panama City, 2026 Building Services fee schedule
Electrical new work, additions, and alterations at $0.65 per $1,000 of valuation. Published minimum $40. Updated September 23, 2026.
- FPL, Project Portal scheduling disconnect and reconnect appointments
Only FPL is authorized to disconnect service conductors going to the home. Meter-enclosure electrical work needs an inspecting-authority inspection before FPL re-energizes.
- FPL, Electric Service Standards
FPL normally performs both disconnect and reconnect. A licensed contractor may disconnect some overhead single-phase services of 300 amps or less only when FPL approves it and a reconnect appointment is already scheduled.
- Florida DBPR, License search
Official Florida contractor license lookup.