South Carolina · Insurance Adjuster Sample Interactive Mind Map
South Carolina Adjuster Regulations
A visual breakdown of the South Carolina rules an adjuster is tested on — and the six places a national course will steer you wrong.
South Carolina is an unusual state to study, for two reasons. Its claims code contains almost no deadlines — the NAIC grid your national material teaches was never adopted here — and its entire adjuster licensing law was repealed and replaced in May 2026, while the exam still tests the old one. This map handles both: what is tested, and what is now in force.
So explore it. Click through the clusters, then take the scenario quiz at the end and see which numbers have actually stuck.
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⚠️
South Carolina is between two licensing regimes right now
On May 19, 2026 the Governor signed Act No. 209. It repeals Title 38 Chapters 47 and 48 — the entire adjuster and public adjuster licensing law — and replaces them with Chapters 91 and 92.
Two consequences you need together: the Pearson VUE handbook is version 05.2023, three years older than the Act, so the exam almost certainly still tests the repealed law — and the SCDOI website has not been updated either, still telling applicants there are no fingerprints and no CE.
Clusters 1 and 2 teach the tested law, with every Act 209 change flagged. Clusters 3–5 are current law and unaffected.
Two consequences you need together: the Pearson VUE handbook is version 05.2023, three years older than the Act, so the exam almost certainly still tests the repealed law — and the SCDOI website has not been updated either, still telling applicants there are no fingerprints and no CE.
Clusters 1 and 2 teach the tested law, with every Act 209 change flagged. Clusters 3–5 are current law and unaffected.
📚 As tested — repealed Ch. 47/48
⚖️ In force — Act 209, Ch. 91/92
Lines of authority
None in statute — lines existed only as separate examsLines of authority
Property & casualty · workers' compensation · crop, plus others the Director prescribesWho can be licensed
Individuals onlyWho can be licensed
Individuals and business entities ($50)Exemptions
Two — producers, and portable-electronics data entryExemptions
Thirteen — now including attorneys and non-regular employeesBackground check
Name-based SLED report, under 3 months oldBackground check
SLED + FBI fingerprints; 18+; no felony in 10 yearsFee
$80, retaliatory for nonresidentsFee
$100 individual / $50 entityContinuing education
NONEContinuing education
24 hrs incl. 3 ethics, +3 more for the WC lineDesignated home state
SCDOI: “SC should never be selected as a DHS state”Designated home state
DHS provision now in statute — but operationally unconfirmedPublic adjuster
No bond. No fee cap.Public adjuster
$20,000 bond · 10% cap · no fee before settlementThe highest-risk item in South Carolina materialAnything saying South Carolina caps public adjuster fees or requires a bond was flatly wrong for decades and became right on May 19, 2026. Anything saying South Carolina has no cap was right for decades and is wrong now. Check the publication date of everything you read on this point.
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Who Must Be Licensed — the Tested Language
Repealed § 38-47-10(A), and it is worth knowing verbatim
“An individual commonly called an adjuster, adjusting losses for an insurer licensed to do business in this State, must be licensed… The director… shall satisfy himself that each applicant… is an individual of good moral character, has sufficient knowledge of the insurance business…, has not violated the insurance laws of the State, and is a fit and proper individual for the position. No license may be issued to a nonresident adjuster who resides in a state refusing to license South Carolina adjusters.”
Four standards plus a reciprocity barGood moral character · sufficient knowledge · no insurance-law violations · fit and proper. Then the blunt bar on nonresidents from states that refuse to license South Carolinians.
The exemption trapPrep sites have long claimed South Carolina exempts attorneys and salaried company employees. Under repealed Chapter 47 that was simply wrong — neither exemption existed. It became right only on May 19, 2026. And even under Act 209, the employee exemption reaches only someone not regularly engaged in claims, so a working staff adjuster still needs a license.
No prelicensing course. No appointment. A fixed renewal date that has nothing to do with your birthday. And a passing score that is not a percentage.
South Carolina's licensing path is one of the leanest in the country — which is exactly why the few requirements it does have get mis-stated.
South Carolina's licensing path is one of the leanest in the country — which is exactly why the few requirements it does have get mis-stated.
| Examination | Items | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Property, Casualty, Surety & Marine — InsSC-PCSMAdj11 | 105 | 120 min |
| Personal Lines — InsSC-PLAdj23 | 80 | 120 min |
| Commercial Lines — InsSC-CLAdj24 | 75 | 90 min |
| Workers' Compensation — InsSC-WCAdj25 | 60 | 90 min |
| Crop Hail — InsSC-HAdj13 | 50 | 60 min |
| Public Adjuster — InsSC-PubAdj14 | 60 | 65 min |
Pearson VUE since May 1, 2023 — $59 per exam, certificate valid 12 months
🔢
The passing score is a SCALED 70 — not 70%
The handbook is explicit: scores “range from 0 to 100, but should not be interpreted as the percentage or number of correct answers.” Regulation 69-23 independently sets the bar at “at least seventy (70) points.”
Prep sites routinely say “70%.” A scaled score is the output of an equating process that adjusts for form difficulty — you cannot compute your standing by counting right answers on a practice test.
Prep sites routinely say “70%.” A scaled score is the output of an equating process that adjusts for form difficulty — you cannot compute your standing by counting right answers on a practice test.
Renewal
August 31, odd years
Adjusters renew by August 31 of each odd-numbered year. Public adjusters: October 31 of even years. The next adjuster renewal is August 31, 2027.
Not your birthday
That's the producer rule
South Carolina producers renew on the last day of their birth month under Reg. 69-50. Adjusters do not. The most common SC licensing error is crossing the two.
Appointment
There isn't one
South Carolina has never required an adjuster to be appointed by an insurer, and Act 209 does not add one. The direct opposite of Florida.
🌪️
Catastrophe Work — Regulation 69-1
Act 209 says nothing about emergencies. This regulation is the whole authority.
- An unusual circumstance exists on a “specific, infrequent, and sudden natural or manmade disaster” — SCDOI declares it and announces its expiration
- A nonresident adjuster may then work SC losses on their home-state license, remaining “only for the period that is necessary”
- 120 days maximum initial appointment — extensions need written Department authorization
- Insurers have 48 hours after appointing an emergency adjuster to file the application
- The insurer applies, never the individual. Non-SC-licensed individuals and other entities cannot obtain permits directly
Where the numbers come fromThe 120-day cap and the 48-hour filing window are SCDOI procedure, not the regulation — Reg. 69-1 itself sets no day count. Cite them as Department procedure under 69-1, not as statute.
Exam exemptions — and a live conflictRegulation 69-23 waives the exam for CPCU or CLU. Act 209 § 38-91-80 names only CPCU, plus a nonresident applying within 90 days of establishing SC residency and a reinstatement within 12 months. CLU is not on the statutory list and the regulation has not been amended. Statute controls, but the conflict is unresolved.
⏳
South Carolina has essentially NO claim-handling deadlines
South Carolina has not adopted the NAIC Unfair Claims Settlement Practices Model Regulation. A sweep of Regulation Chapter 69 turns up no claims-settlement regulation at all — no acknowledgment deadline, no investigation deadline, no payment deadline, no status-update duty.
If a question offers “15 business days to acknowledge” or “30 days to accept or deny” as the South Carolina answer, it is importing another state's law.
If a question offers “15 business days to acknowledge” or “30 days to accept or deny” as the South Carolina answer, it is importing another state's law.
| Days | Trigger | What it actually does |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | Insurer's receipt of notice of loss — § 38-59-10 | Insurer must furnish proof-of-loss forms. Miss it and the insured is deemed to have complied with the proof-of-loss condition. |
| 90 | The policyholder's written demand — § 38-59-40 | Refusal beyond 90 days, if without reasonable cause or in bad faith, exposes the insurer to attorney's fees up to 1/3 of the judgment. |
| 30 | Service of pleadings on the UM carrier — § 38-77-150(B) | The UM insurer's window to appear and defend in the uninsured motorist's name. |
| 3 yrs | Breach or refusal to pay — § 15-3-530 | Suit limitation. 20 years if the contract is under seal. |
The one exception — do not generalize from it§§ 38-59-200 to 38-59-270 do impose hard clean-claim deadlines: 20 business days electronic, 40 business days paper. Those are health insurance only. A property or auto adjuster must never import them.
⚖️
Improper Claim Practices — § 38-59-20
Note the name. And note that BOTH qualifiers are required.
“Any of the following acts by an insurer… if committed without just cause AND performed with such frequency as to indicate a general business practice, constitutes improper claim practices…”
- 1. Knowingly misrepresenting pertinent facts or policy provisions
- 2. Failing to acknowledge with reasonable promptness pertinent communications
- 3. Failing to adopt reasonable standards for prompt investigation and settlement
- 4. Not attempting in good faith to settle where liability has become reasonably clear
- 5. Compelling claimants to sue by offering substantially less than is ultimately recovered
- 6. Offering less because the claimant would have to incur attorney's fees to recover
- 7. Invoking or threatening policy defenses or rescission in bad faith to discourage a claim
- 8. Any other practice constituting unreasonable delay in paying or settling
The divergence from FloridaIn South Carolina the frequency qualifier attaches to every one of the eight items — there is no single-act list. One mishandled claim is not a violation here. Compare Florida, where three of the four groups violate on a single occurrence.
🚫 No private right of action
§ 38-59-20 creates no private cause of action — enforcement is the Director's alone
Penalties under § 38-2-10: $15,000 non-willful, $30,000 willful
A penalty may not be counted as a cost when deciding whether rates warrant adjustment
⚖️ Bad faith is common law
Nichols v. State Farm (1983) — a judge-made tort, not § 38-59-20
Standard: no reasonable basis to support the insurer's decision
Punitives where conduct was willful or in reckless disregard; SOL 3 years
Key defense: a reasonable ground for contesting defeats bad faith — document it
South Carolina HAS a valued policy law and has NOT adopted the Standard Fire Policy. Most national courses get both backwards.
And on the coast, the Wind Pool writes wind and hail only — it is not a FAIR plan and not a homeowners policy.
And on the coast, the Wind Pool writes wind and hail only — it is not a FAIR plan and not a homeowners policy.
✅ Valued policy law — § 38-75-20
Total loss BY FIRE → the full face amount. No ACV or depreciation argument
Partial loss → actual loss, capped at the policy amount
Real property only — expressly “does not apply to… chattels or personal property”
Multiple policies → pro rata contribution
⚠️ Fire-specific — it does not reach a windstorm or hurricane total loss
❌ No Standard Fire Policy
South Carolina has not enacted the 1943 NY Standard Fire Policy or any prescribed form
Fire insurance is regulated through substantive statutes — §§ 38-75-10 to 38-75-60
National courses teach the 165-line SFP as universal. Do not answer a SC question with SFP line numbers
| Cancellation & nonrenewal — property | Notice | Cite |
|---|---|---|
| Cancellation for nonpayment of premium | 10 days | § 38-75-730 |
| Cancellation on all other permissible grounds | 30 days | § 38-75-730 |
| Nonrenewal — must state the precise reason | 60 days | § 38-75-740 |
| New-business window — cancel for any reason under 120 days in force | 120 days | § 38-75-730 |
The 120-day windowMost national courses teach a 60-day or 90-day free-cancellation window for new property business. South Carolina's is 120 days. After that the insurer is locked into the enumerated grounds — and may not cancel for a risk change it knew about beforehand.
🌪️
The Wind Pool — SCWHUA, § 38-75-310 et seq.
Wind and hail only. Not a FAIR plan, not a homeowners policy, not flood.
- Purpose: “to assure an adequate market for wind and hail insurance in the coastal areas of this State”
- Membership is mandatory for all private insurers writing property insurance in South Carolina
- Two zones across Beaufort, Colleton, Charleston, Georgetown, and Horry counties
- Eligibility is address-specific — SCWHUA's online lookup is the authority, not a county list
- Forms: WHP 1 dwellings · WHA 1 condo unit owners · WHM 1 manufactured homes · WHC 1 commercial
- Limits: $1,300,000 for 1–4 family dwellings and small condos; $2,500,000 other commercial
- Deductible is an occurrence AND an aggregate deductible; separate deductibles per structure and its contents; 1% for non-named storms
Do not state a flat rule for the voluntary marketSouth Carolina statute and regulation do not mandate per-occurrence versus annual treatment for voluntary-market homeowners policies — that is a form-and-filing question, carrier by carrier. The correct answer: SCWHUA is occurrence and aggregate; in the voluntary market, read the declarations page.
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A named-storm deductible can be triggered by a tropical depression
Regulation 69-56 defines a Named Storm Deductible as one triggered by a weather event officially named by the National Weather Service or National Hurricane Center — including a “hurricane, tropical storm or tropical depression.” Landfall as a hurricane is not required.
Mandatory disclosure: an illustration on a $100,000 policy, plus this on the policy face and declarations page — “THIS POLICY CONTAINS A SEPARATE DEDUCTIBLE FOR HURRICANE, NAMED STORM OR WIND/HAIL LOSSES.” Introducing or increasing one at renewal requires the insured's signed acknowledgment.
Mandatory disclosure: an illustration on a $100,000 policy, plus this on the policy face and declarations page — “THIS POLICY CONTAINS A SEPARATE DEDUCTIBLE FOR HURRICANE, NAMED STORM OR WIND/HAIL LOSSES.” Introducing or increasing one at renewal requires the insured's signed acknowledgment.
South Carolina is a tort state with a three-tier UM/UIM structure — and a botched offer creates coverage at liability limits.
No PIP. No no-fault threshold. Medical payments is optional.
No PIP. No no-fault threshold. Medical payments is optional.
🚗
The Three Tiers — §§ 38-77-150 and 38-77-160
Minimums 25/50/25, and none of them have moved
- Tier 1 — Uninsured motorist at the minimums: MANDATORY, cannot be rejected. Includes UM property damage of $25,000
- Tier 2 — Additional (“excess”) UM up to the insured's liability limits: must be offered, rejectable
- Tier 3 — Underinsured motorist up to the insured's liability limits: must be offered, rejectable
- UM insurer has 30 days after service of pleadings to appear and defend in the uninsured motorist's name
The $200 UM property damage deductible§ 38-77-150 lets the insurer “provide an exclusion of the first two hundred dollars of the loss or damage” on UM property damage. Distinctive to South Carolina and frequently tested.
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A defective meaningful offer CREATES coverage — § 38-77-350
When the named insured signs the Director-approved form, “it is conclusively presumed that there was an informed, knowing selection of coverage.” No new offer is required on a policy that renews, extends, changes, supersedes, or replaces an existing one.
But if the insured does not return the executed form within 30 days, the insurer “shall add on uninsured motorist and underinsured motorist coverages with the same policy limits as the insured's liability limits.” A failed offer therefore creates UIM by operation of law at liability limits. This is heavily litigated and is a live coverage question on real files — not a sales issue.
But if the insured does not return the executed form within 30 days, the insurer “shall add on uninsured motorist and underinsured motorist coverages with the same policy limits as the insured's liability limits.” A failed offer therefore creates UIM by operation of law at liability limits. This is heavily litigated and is a live coverage question on real files — not a sales issue.
⚖️ Fault — Nelson (1991)
📑 Act No. 42 — effective 1/1/2026
The standard
A plaintiff recovers if his negligence is “not greater than” the defendant's — so exactly 50% still recovers, barred at 51%The trigger
Applies only to causes of action arising or accruing after January 1, 2026 — you will carry files on both sides of that lineMultiple defendants
Plaintiff's negligence is compared to their combined negligenceJoint & several
Does not apply to a defendant less than 50% at fault; at or above 50%, joint and several survivesShorthand
“51% bar” is correct. “50% bar” is wrong.Headline change
Non-party tortfeasors go on the verdict form — disclosed within 180 days, defendant bears the burden. Empty chairs now absorb fault💰
Guaranty association
$250 deductible per covered claim · cap under $300,000 · workers' comp UNCAPPED · $10M aggregate. Excludes bad faith and punitive damages, attorney's fees, and interest.
🚨
Fraud — your duty
§ 38-55-570 binds “any person, insurer, or authorized agency” with reason to believe. No numeric deadline exists. Immunity for good-faith reports, lost on malice or bad faith.
⚖️
Fraud thresholds
§ 38-55-170: under $2,000 misdemeanor · $2,000–$9,999 felony to 5 years · $10,000+ felony to 10 years. Second Omnibus violation is a felony regardless of amount.
🏭
Workers' comp
66⅔% of AWW, up to 500 weeks. $1,178.30 max for 2026, set by date of injury. 7-day wait, retroactive past 14 days. Report 90 days, file 2 years.
Where to report fraud — statute and practice have diverged§ 38-55-560 still places the Insurance Fraud Division in the Office of the Attorney General, and that is the statutory exam answer. In practice SCDOI now runs the intake — OFRS.naic.org, FraudDivision@doi.sc.gov, and a hotline. H.4784 would formally move it but remains in committee and is not law.
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Top Exam Tips — South Carolina Adjuster Regulations
1. South Carolina has almost no claim-handling deadlines. Only 20 days for proof-of-loss forms and 90 days from demand for the fee statute. The NAIC 15/15/45 grid is not South Carolina law.
2. § 38-59-20 requires BOTH “without just cause” AND a general business practice — for all eight items. One mishandled claim is not a violation.
3. No private right of action under the statute. The private remedy is common-law bad faith, Nichols (1983).
4. § 38-59-40: fees after 90 days from demand, capped at one-third of the judgment, first-party only.
5. South Carolina HAS a valued policy law — full face amount on a total loss by fire, real property only — and has NOT adopted the Standard Fire Policy.
6. Property cancellation: 10 / 30 / 60, with a 120-day new-business window. Not 60, not 90.
7. Auto: 25/50/25, tort state, UM mandatory with a $200 UM property damage deductible; UIM offered and rejectable.
8. A failed meaningful offer adds UM/UIM at liability limits by operation of law.
9. “Not greater than” — 50% recovers, 51% is barred. Act 42 applies to claims accruing after 1/1/2026.
10. Guaranty: $250 deductible, under $300,000 cap, workers' comp uncapped.
11. Renewal is August 31 of odd years — birth-month renewal is the producer rule. And there is no appointment in South Carolina.
12. Act 209 (May 19, 2026) repealed Chapters 47 and 48. The exam probably still tests the old law — know both.
2. § 38-59-20 requires BOTH “without just cause” AND a general business practice — for all eight items. One mishandled claim is not a violation.
3. No private right of action under the statute. The private remedy is common-law bad faith, Nichols (1983).
4. § 38-59-40: fees after 90 days from demand, capped at one-third of the judgment, first-party only.
5. South Carolina HAS a valued policy law — full face amount on a total loss by fire, real property only — and has NOT adopted the Standard Fire Policy.
6. Property cancellation: 10 / 30 / 60, with a 120-day new-business window. Not 60, not 90.
7. Auto: 25/50/25, tort state, UM mandatory with a $200 UM property damage deductible; UIM offered and rejectable.
8. A failed meaningful offer adds UM/UIM at liability limits by operation of law.
9. “Not greater than” — 50% recovers, 51% is barred. Act 42 applies to claims accruing after 1/1/2026.
10. Guaranty: $250 deductible, under $300,000 cap, workers' comp uncapped.
11. Renewal is August 31 of odd years — birth-month renewal is the producer rule. And there is no appointment in South Carolina.
12. Act 209 (May 19, 2026) repealed Chapters 47 and 48. The exam probably still tests the old law — know both.
Exam vocabulary
Key Terms to Know
Act No. 209 (2026)
Signed May 19, 2026. Repealed Title 38 Chapters 47 and 48; created Chapters 91 and 92. Adds fingerprints, CE, and business entity licensing.
Improper Claim Practices
South Carolina's term for unfair claim settlement practices — § 38-59-20, eight items, all requiring a general business practice.
General Business Practice
The frequency qualifier. In South Carolina it attaches to every item, so a single mishandled claim is not a violation.
§ 38-59-40
Attorney's fees where the insurer refuses to pay 90 days after demand without reasonable cause — capped at one-third of the judgment, first-party only.
§ 38-59-10 — the 20-day rule
Insurer must furnish proof-of-loss forms within 20 days of notice, or the insured is deemed to have complied.
Nichols v. State Farm (1983)
Recognized South Carolina's common-law first-party bad faith tort. Bad faith here is not statutory.
Valued Policy Law — § 38-75-20
Total loss by fire → the full face amount. Real property only — not chattels or personal property.
Wind Pool (SCWHUA)
Coastal residual market writing wind and hail only — monoline, alongside a homeowners policy, across five coastal counties.
Named Storm Deductible
Triggered by an officially named event — including a tropical storm or depression, not just a hurricane (Reg. 69-56).
Three-Tier UM/UIM
Mandatory UM at the minimums, plus optional additional UM and optional UIM, both capped at the insured's liability limits.
Meaningful Offer — § 38-77-350
A defective offer adds UM/UIM at liability limits by operation of law if the form is not returned within 30 days.
The 120-Day Window
A property policy in force fewer than 120 days may be cancelled for any reason. Not 60, not 90.
Regulation 69-1
Emergency adjusters — nonresidents work a declared catastrophe on their home-state license, and the insurer applies.
Act No. 42 (2025)
Tort reform effective January 1, 2026 — non-party fault on the verdict form, joint and several restructured.
Scaled Score
South Carolina reports a passing score of 70 that is not a percentage — you cannot compute it by counting correct answers.
Food Spoilage Exemption
No adjuster license needed to adjust food spoilage claims where coverage for that loss type is limited to $500 or less.
Like learning this way? There's a whole library of them.
If the old manual you inherited from the office breakroom isn't cutting it and this format fits how your brain actually works, you'll want the rest. There are 56 Interactive Mind Maps like this one in the TESTivity Platinum Insurance Adjuster package — covering the full curriculum, right alongside the practice questions, exam simulators, and study guides.
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