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State guide

How to become a public adjuster in Ohio

Ohio requires a public adjuster license. There is no statutory fee cap; the surety bond is $1,000 per person named in the application; the governing law is Ohio Rev. Code ch. 3951.

The pathway

Getting licensed in Ohio

The license is the Public Insurance Adjuster (PIA) certificate of authority. It is its own license, so make sure any course or exam you book is the public adjuster one and not the company or independent adjuster version. Ohio Department of Insurance (ODI). Ohio does not license company, independent, or catastrophe adjusters; only public insurance adjusters (and their employee 'Public Insurance Adjuster Agents', $50 fee, no exam) are licensed under ORC Chapter 3951.

Official sources

Gathered from these sources on August 28, 2026. Fees and hours change with the legislative calendar, and this page may be out of date. The regulator’s own page is the only current authority.

  1. Schedule and pass the Ohio Public Adjuster exam (PSI Series 11-38, 100 questions, 2 hours, 70% to pass, $49). No pre-licensing course is required.

  2. Buy a $1,000 surety bond payable to the State of Ohio (use ODI bond form INS3007 or your surety's form) and obtain a copy of the surety's Power of Attorney.

  3. Prepare the public adjuster contract form you will use with Ohio policyholders; ODI reviews it with your application.

  4. Apply online through the Ohio Department of Insurance (or on paper Form INS3214) and pay the $100 non-refundable fee, uploading the bond, Power of Attorney, and contract.

  5. Renew every year before December 31 for $50; Ohio has no continuing education requirement for public insurance adjusters.

Who can apply
Residents and non-residents Resident applicants take the Ohio exam. Nonresidents qualify if they hold an active public insurance adjuster license in good standing in their home state, or meet ORC 4796 universal-recognition criteria (similar license held 1+ year, worked as a PA 1 of the past 5 years, good standing).
Prelicensing course
Not required ODI Form INS3024 and the PSI candidate handbook both list 'None' for pre-licensing education for the Public Insurance Adjuster license.
State exam
PSI · 100 questions · 120 minutes · pass at 70% · $49 per attempt Exam required for resident applicants; may be waived under ORC 3951.09 for nonresidents licensed in another state. Exam fee valid for one year; non-refundable.
Application
ODI online application (Ohio Department of Insurance Gateway) · $100 application fee Public Insurance Adjuster Agent (employee) license $50; PSI exam $49. Online application or paper Form INS3214. Must include proof of $1,000 bond (or Ohio bond form INS3007), a copy of the Power of Attorney for the bond signer, and a copy of the contract form to be used in Ohio. Incomplete applications are returned.
Background check
No fingerprint/background check listed for the Public Insurance Adjuster license in the PSI candidate handbook license table (fingerprints are required for producer lines, not PIA).
Surety bond
$1,000 Surety bond payable to the State of Ohio, conditioned on faithful performance under ORC 3951.01-3951.10 (ORC 3951.06(D)). Required for each person named in the application.
Renewal
Annually · $50 Every certificate of authority expires December 31 of the year issued and is renewed under the standard renewal procedure of ORC 4745.01-4745.03 (ORC 3951.06(C)). Renewal is without re-examination. Filing the renewal before January 1 keeps the certificate in force until ODI acts on it.
Continuing education
None required ODI Form INS3024 states no continuing education is required for public insurance adjusters.
Already licensed elsewhere?
Reciprocity available Nonresidents holding an active PA license in good standing in their home state may be licensed (ORC 3951.06(D)); exam may be waived under ORC 3951.09 / ORC 4796.

Not stated in these sources

These points were not stated in the sources listed, so we have left them blank rather than guess. Ask the regulator directly:

  • ·Eligibility minimum age: ORC Chapter 3951 and ODI Form INS3024 state no minimum age for the PIA license; none found.
  • ·Application url: ODI's public-insurance-adjuster licensing web pages returned 404 during research; the general Agents & Agencies landing page is given instead. Application portal name is inferred from ODI's online application system.
  • ·Application fingerprint fee: PSI handbook lists no fingerprint requirement for the PIA license; fingerprint fee at PSI centers ($72.25) applies to producer lines.

Ohio in the reference tables

Each table answers one question for all 50 states and DC, with the citation. Open one and find the Ohio row.

See how a claim runs in Ohio, stage by stage Associations covering Ohio

Ohio law in the library

23 primary-source documents for Ohio: statutes, regulations, bulletins and consumer guides, stored as published. Sign in to open them.

  • REGULATION__OH__OAC_3901-1-07_Additional_Unfair_Trade_Practices.md Binding law
  • REGULATION__OH__OAC_3901-1-24_Public_Insurance_Adjusters.md Binding law
  • REGULATION__OH__OAC_3901-1-54_Unfair_Property_Casualty_Claims_Settlement_Practices.md Binding law
  • STATUTE__OH__ORC_2305.06_Contract_in_Writing_Limitation.md Binding law
  • STATUTE__OH__ORC_2315.21_Punitive_and_Exemplary_Damages.md Binding law
  • STATUTE__OH__ORC_3901.21_Unfair_and_Deceptive_Acts_or_Practices.md Binding law
  • STATUTE__OH__ORC_3901.22_Hearing_Cease_and_Desist_Penalties.md Binding law
  • STATUTE__OH__ORC_3929.25_Insurable_Value_Fixed_by_Agent.md Binding law