All About Registering For and Taking the Florida Insurance Exam

What is the Florida Insurance Exam Like?

Florida has contracted with Pearson VUE, a testing service, to administer the Florida insurance exams. The Florida insurance licensing exam will test your knowledge and understanding of broad insurance concepts. The exam is also designed to challenge your reading comprehension, product knowledge, and test-taking skills. The following are key points about the exam format:  

• Multiple Choice Questions.  All examination questions are multiple-choice with 4 possible answers. The typical question is short – usually just one sentence followed by 4 answer choices. Although there are short “story” problems on the exam, even those are quite brief. Even though the trend among many test writers is for longer questions, you will be surprised by how short the questions are.
• Very Few Math Problems.  There are very few math questions and the math problems on the exam are very straightforward. Basic addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division skills are all the math skills required. (Please review our Math Problems Super Sheet found in your online course materials to master the math problems.) The testing company provides you with scratch paper, but they do not allow you to use a calculator while taking the exam. 180 Licensing will provide you with sample math problems so there will be no surprises at exam time.
• Read Key Words Carefully.  Test questions are not designed to mislead. However, just like any other exam questions, misreading the questions will impact your score. Words such as ALL, NONE, EXCEPT are often used and, if misread, can dramatically impact your score.
• Question Types.  About 80 percent of exam questions cover conceptual knowledge, while the remaining 20 percent cover specific facts, such as number of days, dollar amounts, etc.

Florida Insurance Exam Details

You will take your exam on a computer, with your test results provided immediately afterwards. All score reports include a numeric score along with diagnostic information regarding the general potion of the examination. Candidates who fail the examination will also receive information about retaking the exam. 

Minimum Passing Score.  Florida requires that you receive a 70 percent or higher score to pass the exam.  In our experience, this score is difficult to interpret because the passing score is curved and questions have different weight values. So there is really no way to know exactly how many questions you have missed with any particular score. Our experience has shown that most students who do have trouble on the exam receive a score within 5 points of passing. The problem of course is that missing a passing score by 5 points does not tell you how many questions you actually missed. And, you don’t know which particular questions you missed either.

Passing the Exam Does Not Equal a License.  Passing the insurance exam does not automatically mean that you receive an insurance license unless you applied for license when applying to take the exam. You must work with your employer in order to apply for and receive your insurance license from the Florida Department of Financial Services. (For more information about obtaining your license, see our article Steps to Getting Your Florida Insurance License.)

Where is the Florida Insurance Exam Given?

When you register with Pearson VUE, you will be asked to specify a test center location. Several ways to find a location include:

Online Test Locator.  To find a test center that is most convenient for you by using the online Pearson VUE Test Center locator, go here.

Reference to the Candidate Handbook.  You can also find the list of test locations by viewing the Pearson VUE Florida Insurance Candidate Handbook. Go here.

Test Locations in Florida.  Although they may be changed from time to time, the usual testing locations are:
Boynton Beach, Coral Gables, Doral, Fort Myers, Ft Lauderdale, Gainesville, Hollywood, Jacksonville, Lake Mary, Lakeland, Melbourne, Miami, Oakland Park, Orlando, Ormond Beach, Pensacola, Sarasota, St. Petersburg, Tallahassee, and Tampa.

Keep in mind it may be possible to take the Florida insurance exams in other parts of the country. Pearson VUE’s Florida Candidate Handbook lists those alternative locations. Go here.

How Do I Register For the Florida Insurance Exam?

Candidates must receive authorization from the Florida Department of Financial services before taking the exam. Applications can be found online here under My Profile. You may also apply for your insurance license at that time or select the examination only option. Once you have completed the application you will receive an Examination Authorization Notice from the Department. You must schedule your exam by the date specified on the Notice. Candidates who pass the exam and have already applied for their license will receive their license at the test center. Candidates who pass, but selected the examination only option have one year to apply for their license. An alternative license application portal can be found at NIPR. Go here.

If you have any disabilities that require special attention, be sure to contact the Pearson VUE well ahead of time to make special arrangements. When signing up for your specific exam date, keep in mind that examination time slots may fill up quickly.

• Schedule Your Exam.  Use the links below to schedule and register for your exam. Be sure to give yourself plenty of time to ensure the location and date you prefer are available. We recommend scheduling you exam at least one week in advance.
• Exam Registration:  Website
• Register for Fingerprinting.  Florida requires that you be fingerprinted and undergo a U.S. Department of Justice background check. You obtain your fingerprints through IdentoGo, the fingerprint service company contracted by Florida. Preregistration is required before visiting an IdentoGo location in Florida. Get fingerprinted after passing your exam and immediately before applying for your license. Go here.
• Change a Scheduled Exam Date.  Keep in mind that if you need to change your testing time or date, the Pearson VUE will sometimes cancel your existing testing time before they can see if other time slots are available. Reschedule as soon as possible in order to avoid forfeiting your registration fee. Visit the online registration page to view/edit your appointment.

When Should I Schedule My Florida Insurance Exam?

We recommend that you plan to contact the Pearson VUE at least three weeks prior to completing your required prelicensing course. That will allow you to predict when you will complete the course and also give you the opportunity to pick an exam date that falls soon after finishing the course. If you take the exam too long after completing the course, it becomes more difficult to remember the details.

Is the Florida Insurance Exam Available in Any Other Language?

In Florida, the exam is not given in languages other than English. But candidates for whom English is a second language may request additional time by filling out a Special Accommodations Request Form found in the candidate handbook. Go here.

Which Florida Insurance Exam Will I Take?

The most common types of licenses and related exam names or numbers for Florida are listed below, along with the number of questions and the time allotted for each exam. Students report to us that they normally complete their exams with time left over. But, be sure to watch the clock on your test computer to keep track of the remaining time on each exam. And, if you have any doubt as to which exam you need, your employer is the best person to ask.

*This is not a complete list of all insurance licenses in Florida. For a complete list, go here.

What if I Fail the Test? Can I Retake It?

Yes. Each state has a different rule on this and the rules change from time to time. The best source to find the answer is from the testing service’s handbook (see below).

Where can I Find Additional FAQ’s about Florida’s Licensing Exam?

Find the current answers to many of your questions from the Florida’s Insurance Licensing Information Bulletin here.

Disclaimer:  180 Licensing Exam Prep, Inc. makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of this article, information is subject to change. The final authority for the latest insurance licensing information is your state’s department of insurance.

Must Read:  Our National online, self-paced, exam prep courses offered in Florida do not meet your state’s prelicensing education requirement. They contain national insurance and general state law rules, but do not contain your exam’s specific state law content (about 15-20% of your exam). If you have taken an approved prelicensing education course, have a valid certificate, and still need a passing score, use our materials and supplement with the state law material from your prelicensing provider. Designed by award winning Professor Jerry Furniss, our interactive exam prep materials are excellent for getting you over the finish line the fastest and easiest way possible. Go here for more information.