# South Carolina S 0196: AN ACT TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY ADDING CHAPTER 91 TO TITLE 38 SO AS TO REGULATE THE LICENSURE OF INSURANCE ADJUSTERS, AMONG OTHER THINGS; BY ADDING CHAPTER 92 TO TITLE 38 SO AS TO REGULATE THE LICENSURE OF PUBLIC INSURANCE ADJUSTERS, AMONG OTHER THINGS; TO AMEND SECTION 38-1-20, RELATING TO DEFINITIONS, SO AS TO PROVIDE A DEFINITION; AND BY REPEALING CHAPTERS 47 AND 48 OF TITLE 38 RELATING TO INSURANCE ADJUSTERS AND PUBLIC INSURANCE ADJUSTERS. South Carolina S 0196, AN ACT TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY ADDING CHAPTER 91 TO TITLE 38 SO AS TO REGULATE THE LICENSURE OF INSURANCE ADJUSTERS, AMONG OTHER THINGS; BY ADDING CHAPTER 92 TO TITLE 38 SO AS TO REGULATE THE LICENSURE OF PUBLIC INSURANCE ADJUSTERS, AMONG OTHER THINGS; TO AMEND SECTION 38-1-20, RELATING TO DEFINITIONS, SO AS TO PROVIDE A DEFINITION; AND BY REPEALING CHAPTERS 47 AND 48 OF TITLE 38 RELATING TO INSURANCE ADJUSTERS AND PUBLIC INSURANCE ADJUSTERS., is a 126th General Assembly (2025-2026) Senate bill sponsored by Ronnie W. Cromer (Republican); status signed, last action 2026-06-05 (Effective date 05/19/26); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/SC-S0196-2025-2026 - As of: 2026-10-12 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Bill: South Carolina S 0196 - State: South Carolina - Session: 126th General Assembly (2025-2026) - Title: AN ACT TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY ADDING CHAPTER 91 TO TITLE 38 SO AS TO REGULATE THE LICENSURE OF INSURANCE ADJUSTERS, AMONG OTHER THINGS; BY ADDING CHAPTER 92 TO TITLE 38 SO AS TO REGULATE THE LICENSURE OF PUBLIC INSURANCE ADJUSTERS, AMONG OTHER THINGS; TO AMEND SECTION 38-1-20, RELATING TO DEFINITIONS, SO AS TO PROVIDE A DEFINITION; AND BY REPEALING CHAPTERS 47 AND 48 OF TITLE 38 RELATING TO INSURANCE ADJUSTERS AND PUBLIC INSURANCE ADJUSTERS. - Status: signed - Chamber: Senate - Introduced: 2025-01-14 - Last action: 2026-06-05, Effective date 05/19/26 - Sponsor: Ronnie W. Cromer (Republican) - Cosponsors: 0 - Touches household money: yes - Roll calls: 2 (150 yes, 1 no in all) - Economic provisions PRIA read: 12 ## Summary Insurance Adjusters ## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read - Crackdown on unlicensed or conflicted adjusting: benefit, medium. Insurers must check with the state that anyone handling your claim is licensed or exempt before sending them work. Insurers cannot pay adjusters more than a fixed salary or stipend, and cannot pay a share of money “saved” on claims. Public adjusters cannot pay unlicensed people to investigate or se… - Stronger rights in public adjuster deals: benefit, medium. Public adjuster contracts cannot force you to pay from the first check, take fees when insurer money is still unpaid, require checks in the adjuster’s name, or add late or collection fees. A public adjuster cannot agree to a settlement without your knowledge and written consent. Your property polic… - Stronger rules for public adjusters: benefit, medium. Public adjusters face a hard 10% cap on fees. They cannot take any money before your claim is settled. If your insurer pays or promises the full policy limit within five business days, the adjuster cannot take a percentage and may only charge reasonable time and expense (still capped at 10%). You g… - Director sets rules; law now active: benefit, low. The Director of Insurance can issue bulletins, orders, and regulations to run both adjuster chapters. The law takes effect May 19, 2026, unless a section sets a different date. - Rules for automated claims systems: benefit, low. Automated claims systems for portable electronics can only be used by licensed adjusters, licensed producers, or people they supervise. The system must follow all state claims payment rules. A licensed independent adjuster who is an officer must certify the system as compliant. - Rules for adjuster businesses and owners: cost, low. Any business that adjusts claims in South Carolina must hold a business‑entity adjuster license. The firm must name a licensed individual in charge of compliance, keep a home‑state office open by appointment or during regular hours, and list executives and anyone who owns 10% or more of voting shar… - Tougher penalties and rights for adjusters: mixed, medium. The Director can put an adjuster on probation, suspend, revoke, or refuse a license, and fine per offense. Not paying an imposed fine within up to 30 days can trigger automatic license action. Grounds include fraud, theft of client funds, cheating on exams, certain crimes, tax or child‑support nonc… - Faster small food spoilage claims: mixed, low. Insurer officers, employees, attorneys, or reciprocal producers can adjust food spoilage claims when the policy’s limit for that loss type is $500 or less. This can speed simple, small claims. The Director can suspend or revoke an insurer’s authority for improper claim practices tied to these adjus… - Small food spoilage claims handled faster: mixed, low. If your home policy caps food‑spoilage coverage at $500 or less, certain insurer staff can adjust that claim without a separate adjuster license. The insurer still faces enforcement for improper claim practices. - Adjuster exams, training, and renewals: mixed, low. You must pass a written exam unless exempt; private testing vendors may charge fees. To keep a license, you need 24 hours of continuing education every two years, including 3 hours of ethics. If you handle workers’ comp, include 3 hours on South Carolina workers’ comp law. Renew by August 31 of odd… - Who must get an adjuster license: mixed, low. You cannot act as an adjuster in South Carolina without a license. Applicants must be at least 18, meet good‑character and criminal‑history standards, pass required checks and fingerprinting, and keep contact info updated within 30 days. Licenses last two years and can cover multiple lines (like pr… - New adjuster licensing rules and fees: mixed, low. The state sets adjuster license fees at $100 for individuals and $50 for business entities, paid in advance and nonrefundable. Applicants with the CPCU designation do not need to take the written exam. Some roles are exempt from licensing, like certain supervised portable‑electronics data entry wor… ## Sponsors and cosponsors - Sponsor: Ronnie W. Cromer (Republican), Senate ## Roll call votes | Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 2026-05-05 | House | (Insurance Adjusters)Passage of Bill | pass | 108 | 1 | | | 2025-04-29 | Senate | (Insurance Adjusters)2nd Reading | pass | 42 | 0 | | ## Actions (21) - 2026-06-05: Effective date 05/19/26 (legislature) - 2026-06-02: Act No. 209 (legislature) - 2026-05-19: Signed By Governor (Governor) - 2026-05-14: Ratified R 132 (legislature) - 2026-05-06: Read third time and enrolled (House) - 2026-05-05: Roll call Yeas-108 Nays-1 (House) - 2026-05-05: Read second time (House) - 2026-04-30: Debate adjourned until Tues., 5-5-26 (House) - 2026-04-29: Debate adjourned (House) - 2026-04-28: Debate adjourned (House) - 2026-04-23: Scrivener's error corrected (legislature) - 2026-04-22: Committee report: Favorable Labor, Commerce and Industry (House) - 2025-05-01: Referred to Committee on Labor, Commerce and Industry (House) - 2025-05-01: Introduced and read first time (House) - 2025-04-30: Read third time and sent to House (Senate) - 2025-04-29: Roll call Ayes-42 Nays-0 (Senate) - 2025-04-29: Read second time (Senate) - 2025-04-22: Scrivener's error corrected (legislature) - 2025-04-16: Committee report: Favorable Banking and Insurance (Senate) - 2025-01-14: Referred to Committee on Banking and Insurance (Senate) - 2025-01-14: Introduced and read first time (Senate) ## Bill text - Introduced: [HTML](https://www.scstatehouse.gov/sess126_2025-2026/bills/196.htm) ## Related bills - S 0623: AN ACT TO EXEMPT GEORGETOWN COUNTY FROM CERTAIN BUILDING REQUIREMENTS AND TO ALLOW THE COUNTY TO INSTEAD ENFORCE AE STANDARDS IN GEORGETOWN COUNTY'S FLOOD DAMA… (became law) - S 0586: AN ACT TO AMEND ACT 172 OF 1995, RELATING TO THE KERSHAW COUNTY TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT EACH MEMBER OF THE KERSHAW COUNTY TRANSPORTATIO… (signed) - H 5653: AN ACT TO AMEND ACT 843 OF 1952, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO THE LEE COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION, SO AS TO CLARIFY THE METHOD BY WHICH PERSONS FILE TO BECOME A CANDI… (signed) - S 1062: A JOINT RESOLUTION TO APPROVE REGULATIONS OF THE STATE COMMISSION ON HIGHER EDUCATION, RELATING TO DETERMINATION OF RATES OF TUITION AND FEES, DESIGNATED AS RE… (signed) - S 0779: A JOINT RESOLUTION TO PROVIDE THAT EACH MEMBER OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY SHALL RECEIVE A MONTHLY LEGISLATIVE EXPENSE ALLOWANCE OF ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS; TO PROVID… (signed) - H 5261: A JOINT RESOLUTION TO EXTEND THE DEADLINE FOR RECEIVING ALCOHOL SERVER TRAINING AS PROVIDED FOR IN CHAPTER 3, TITLE 61 TO MAY 1, 2026. (signed) ## Sources - [Introduced (HTML)](https://www.scstatehouse.gov/sess126_2025-2026/bills/196.htm) ## Related - [S 0623: AN ACT TO EXEMPT GEORGETOWN COUNTY FROM CERTAIN BUILDING REQUIREMENTS AND TO AL…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/SC-S0623-2025-2026) - [S 0586: AN ACT TO AMEND ACT 172 OF 1995, RELATING TO THE KERSHAW COUNTY TRANSPORTATION…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/SC-S0586-2025-2026) - [H 5653: AN ACT TO AMEND ACT 843 OF 1952, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO THE LEE COUNTY BOARD O…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/SC-H5653-2025-2026) - [S 1062: A JOINT RESOLUTION TO APPROVE REGULATIONS OF THE STATE COMMISSION ON HIGHER EDU…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/SC-S1062-2025-2026) - [S 0779: A JOINT RESOLUTION TO PROVIDE THAT EACH MEMBER OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY SHALL RE…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/SC-S0779-2025-2026) - [H 5261: A JOINT RESOLUTION TO EXTEND THE DEADLINE FOR RECEIVING ALCOHOL SERVER TRAINING…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/SC-H5261-2025-2026) - [South Carolina bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/south-carolina/bills) - [South Carolina state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/south-carolina) - [All state legislation](https://policyrisk.com/state-bills) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/SC-S0196-2025-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).