How to Cancel a Public Adjuster Contract in Florida

Your cancellation windows

Maybe you signed in a hurry the day after the storm. Maybe a relative found a different adjuster, or you have decided to handle the claim yourself. Florida gives you a short, set window to change your mind.

Under s. 626.854(7), you may cancel a public adjuster contract without penalty or obligation within 10 days after the date the contract is executed. If the contract was based on events under a Governor’s state of emergency declaration, the window is 30 days after the date of loss or 10 days after signing, whichever is longer. These rights apply to residential property and condo unit owner policies (s. 626.854(19)).

You also have a later right. If the adjuster has not given you a written estimate within 60 days of the contract, you may cancel without additional penalties or fees, unless the delay was caused by factors beyond the adjuster’s control. That right ends once the estimate is provided (s. 626.854(12)(b); s. 626.8796(4) and (5)).

Which cancellation right fits your situation

How to cancel, step by step

The contract itself must print the cancellation notice in at least 18-point bold type right before your signature, including how and where to send it (s. 626.854(7)). Follow it closely:

• Find the date you signed and the cancellation address printed in the contract.
• Write a short letter: your name, the property address, your insurer and claim number if you have one, the contract date, and a plain statement that you are canceling the contract.
• Sign and date the letter, and keep a copy.
• Send it to the address in the contract by certified mail, return receipt requested, or another form of mailing that gives you proof.
• Keep the mailing receipt and the return card with your claim file.

Your insurer got a copy of the contract within 7 days of signing (s. 626.8796(2)), so it may still list the adjuster on your claim. Consider sending your insurer a copy of the cancellation so it knows to deal with you directly. You always have the right to talk with your insurer about your claim, a right the DFS disclosure form spells out.

What happens to fees when you cancel in time

A cancellation inside the window is “without penalty or obligation,” in the words of s. 626.854(7). The statutory notice says the same thing and adds that you may cancel “for any reason.” You do not need to explain why.

Two other rules help here. A public adjuster may not be paid for services provided before you receive an unaltered copy of the signed contract or before it is submitted to your insurer (s. 626.8796(3)). And no fee may be charged on payments your insurer made or agreed in writing to make before the contract was signed (s. 626.854(11)(b)4.).

For how fees are set in the first place, see what a public adjuster costs.

What changes after an emergency declaration

Florida treats claims from a declared state of emergency differently in three ways that matter for cancellation and fees:

• The cancellation window grows to 30 days after the date of loss or 10 days after signing, whichever is longer (s. 626.854(7)).
• The fee cap drops to 10 percent for claims made during the year after the declaration. After that year, the 20 percent cap applies (s. 626.854(11)(b)). Both are ceilings.
• The DFS disclosure form you sign before the contract repeats the longer cancellation right in writing (s. 626.8796(6)(g)).

Your contract must state the type of claim: emergency, nonemergency or supplemental (s. 626.8796(2)). Check that line to see which window you have. The contract guide shows where each term appears.

Switching adjusters after the window closes

Once the window has passed, the picture changes. DFS’s Public Adjuster Code of Ethics and Contract Checklist says public adjuster contracts are legally binding and cannot be broken unless a court orders it or the public adjuster agrees to release you. If you want to switch, start by asking the current adjuster, in writing, for a written release.

If the adjuster will not release you, or you disagree about what fee is owed, that is a contract dispute and a legal question. A public adjuster may not give legal advice (s. 626.854(3)), so a Florida attorney is the right person for that part. The same is true if you think the contract never met the requirements of s. 626.8796, which says a noncompliant contract is invalid and unenforceable (s. 626.8796(7)).

Before you decide to switch, try asking for a status update in writing. A public adjuster must respond with specific information to a written or electronic claim status request within 14 days (s. 626.854(24)). Sometimes a clear answer settles the worry.

If you are weighing a change, Adjusterman can do a free claim review of where your claim stands, but we cannot advise you on getting out of another firm’s contract. For what working with an adjuster normally looks like, read after you hire a public adjuster.

If something about the adjuster seems wrong

Cancellation is one tool. If the problem is the adjuster’s conduct, you can also raise it with DFS. The DFS Division of Consumer Services takes insurance concerns by phone at 1-877-693-5236 and through its online portal. DFS says to call the Insurance Fraud Hotline at 1-800-378-0445 if you suspect an adjuster is unlicensed or urges you to overstate a claim. Adjusterman is not affiliated with DFS.

Keep copies of the contract, the disclosure form, your cancellation letter, and every message. If you want to see how the steps of a claim normally run, our process page lays them out.