Insurance Adjusters Information
- Please refer to the User Guides when wishing to apply for a licence - this applies to all amendments, reinstatements, new applicants, late renewals (classified as a reinstatement), or those wishing to apply for a supplementary licence (additional licence).
As individual licence holders conduct insurance activities under the authority and contracts of the adjusting firm, the adjusting firm is responsible for the activities of all licensees and employees. The Designated Representative is responsible for the supervision and management of the adjusting firm which includes all of the insurance activities of the adjusting firm. The ICM holds the designated representative accountable for the actions of the adjusting firm, and for insurance activities under their supervision and management.
These would include:
- reviewing the list of licensees available under the licence search on the ICM website regularly to ensure that it corresponds with your records. Any discrepancies should be reported immediately to the ICM;
- implementing reasonable screening procedures to determine an applicant’s suitability to receive an insurance adjuster licence;
- submitting an application for a new employee and to ensure that a valid licence has been issued by the Insurance Council of Manitoba prior to that applicant acting as an adjuster;
- ensuring that no employee, director or partner who is not licensed acts as an insurance adjuster;
- ensuring that proper and adequate supervision of employees is provided at all times (refer to the Licensing Rules and Code of Conduct);
- ensuring that proper and adequate management of each office (head office and any branch offices) has the appropriate level of Manitoba licensed Insurance Adjuster managing the office;
- immediately notifying the ICM in writing, at any time during the licensing year, if a licence holder leaves the Adjusting Firm, providing the reason and effective date of termination;
- immediately notifying the ICM in writing of any change of Designated Representative;
- ensuring compliance with The Insurance Act of Manitoba, its Regulations, its Rules and the Code of Conduct;
- ensuring that errors and omissions (E&O) insurance is maintained in accordance with the Regulations;
- ensuring that every adjuster licensed with the firm is covered under the firm’s E&O insurance, regardless if they are an independent contractor or an employee;
- ensuring that E&O insurance is kept current in the ICM Licensing Portal (NOTE: failure to keep the E&O current within the online system would result in the licences affiliated with the adjusting firm being disqualified);
- reporting any material changes to the ICM within 15 days (Council considers a material change to include any material fact which may influence Council to amend, or review a licensee’s licence(s). Refer to the Material Changes – When to Disclose them to the ICM available on the ICM website; and
- ensuring that the adjusting firm, and/or its licensees, does/do not represent or hold themselves out to the public in any other name than is stated on the licence, which would include all social media references, email signatures, letterhead, business cards, signage, etc.
Questions on these obligations can be directed to the ICM at contactus@icm.mb.ca.
New Adjuster Licensing Rules came into effect January 1, 2024 and are available on the ICM website – Licensing Rules.
Any person holding an adjuster’s licence is required to comply with The Insurance Act of Manitoba, the Insurance Adjuster’s Licensing Rules, the Regulations and the Adjuster’s Code of Conduct.
Applicants whereby an examination is required can contact the Council’s office at 204-988-6800 to arrange a date and time.
The following defines the restrictions and/or authorizations and requirements to obtain and maintain each level of licence.
Level 1 Assistant Adjuster
Must be sponsored and employed by an adjusting firm.
Must successfully complete one of the following:
- C11 (Principles and Practice of Insurance), or
- C81 and C82 (General Insurance Essentials), or
- A written examination set by Council (pass mark 75%), or
- The ILS Level 1 General and Adjuster Insurance Licence Program (ILS L1).
Must be supervised by a supervising adjuster who has held a Level 2 or Level 3 Adjuster licence for a continuous period of at least three years immediately before becoming the supervising adjuster.
Must provide to council a fully completed Supervision Agreement.
Prohibited from: managing an office of an adjusting firm; supervising an adjuster or assistant adjuster licensed under these rules; signing any reports or correspondence unless the report or correspondence has been reviewed by an individual holding a Level 2 or Level 3 Adjuster licence; and acting as the designated representative of an adjusting firm.
Level 2 Adjuster
Must hold or be eligible to hold a Level 1 Assistant Adjuster licence.
Must successfully complete the following Insurance Institute of Canada courses:
- C11 (Principles and Practice of Insurance), and
- C12 (Insurance on Property), and
- any one of the following: C15 (Loss Adjustment and Claims Settlement), C17 (Claims 1), C110 (Essentials of Loss Adjusting), and
- any one of the following: C13 (Insurance Against Liability – Part 1), C14 (Automobile Insurance – Part 1), C111 (Advanced Loss Adjusting), C112 (Practical Issues in Claims Management).
Must have been employed as an assistant adjuster or adjuster, or worked under contract as an adjuster, in a multiline general insurance company or adjusting firm for a cumulative total of at least two years within the five-year period immediately before the day the application is made.
Must be sponsored by an adjusting firm and is either employed by or works under contract for the firm.
May act as the supervising adjuster of the holder of a Level 1 Assistant Adjuster licence.
May manage an office of an adjusting firm.
Prohibited from: acting as the designated representative of an adjusting firm.
Level 3 Adjuster
Must hold or be eligible to hold a Level 2 Adjuster licence.
Must successfully complete the following Insurance Institute of Canada courses:
- C32 (Bodily Injury Claims), and
- any one of the following: C46 (Claims 2), C41 (Property Loss Adjustment), C111 (Advanced Loss Adjusting), and
- C112 (Practical Issues in Claims Management).
Must have attained the Chartered Insurance Professional (CIP) Designation from the Insurance Institute of Canada.
Must be employed as an adjuster, or worked under contract as an adjuster, in a multiline general insurance company or an adjusting firm for a cumulative total of at least five years within the 10-year period immediately before the day the application is made.
Must be sponsored by an adjusting firm and is either employed by or works under contract for that firm.
May act as the supervising adjuster of the holder of a Level 1 Assistant Adjuster licence.
May manage an office of an adjusting firm.
May act as the designated representative of an adjusting firm.
Adjusting Firm Licence
A sole proprietorship, partnership or corporation is eligible for an adjusting firm licence if it:
- provides the council with evidence of registration with the Companies Office of the Government of Manitoba;
- operates in a physical location that is separate from any financial institution or insurance company;
- does not hold itself out to the public, including on the Internet, as being part of any financial institution or insurance company;
- carries on business separately from any financial institution or insurance company;
- employs at least one adjuster as the adjusting firm’s designated representative;
- employs or engages at least one adjuster holding a Level 2 or Level 3 adjuster licence to manage each branch office other than the office at which the designated representative is located;
- employs or engages at least one adjuster holding a Level 2 or Level 3 adjuster licence to supervise individuals holding Level 1 assistant adjuster licences in each branch office at which an individual holding a Level 1 assistant adjuster licence is located; and
- provides the council with the name and current contact information of the designated representative and each adjuster who supervises an individual holding a Level 1 assistant adjuster licence.
A sole proprietorship, partnership or corporation that operates in one or more jurisdictions outside Manitoba must provide the council with evidence of good standing in each jurisdiction in which it operates to be eligible for an adjusting firm licence.
A designated representative is responsible for the management and operations of the adjusting firm and must hold a Level 3 adjuster licence.
An adjusting firm must advise the council as soon as practicable of any change to the identity or contact information of the firm’s designated representative; or any adjuster responsible for supervising an individual holding a Level 1 assistant adjuster licence at the firm.
Additional Licensing Information
Pursuant to Section 371(2) of The Insurance Act of Manitoba, the completion of an application and passing of a written examination does not guarantee the issue of a licence. Each applicant must first be found suitable to hold a licence.
Manitoba’s licensing year for independent insurance adjusters runs from July 1 to June 30, and licence fees are not prorated.
Adjusters must accumulate eight (8) hours of continuing education annually between July 1 and June 30. More information on continuing education can be found here.
Amendments to the Insurance Agents & Adjusters Regulation were passed into law April 11, 2001, making these minimum requirements mandatory for residents and non-residents.
Pursuant to Section 371(1.1) of The Insurance Act of Manitoba and Section 12 of the Agents & Adjusters Regulation, amendment, you are required to carry a minimum of $1,000,000 in respect of any one occurrence with an overall policy aggregate of at least $5,000,000.
The policy must contain components as; coverage amounts that are exclusive of defense and investigative expenses; coverage that covers all of the insurance products that the insured is licensed to sell and will include coverage for the insured’s supervisory activities (if applicable), for financial planning services provided by the insured (if applicable), and for any unlicensed employee or administrative assistant for whose acts the insured is responsible. The coverage shall include extended reporting for a period of five (5) years, and will provide cover for errors and omissions that were made before the inception of the insurance, provided that the errors and omissions were made after June 1, 2001, and that the insured had no knowledge of the claim. The errors and omissions policy must not be restricted to a particular insurers’ product. An endorsement to include fraud and dishonest acts must also be included as a mandatory requirement of errors and omissions insurance.
You will be required to provide proof satisfactory to the Insurance Council of the existence of this policy when you are renewing your licence. The agents licence applications, including renewal applications, shall also require that the agents attest to having errors and omissions insurance in force, which is in compliance with this section, and that he or she shall immediately cease acting as an agent if such insurance ceases to be in force.
Pursuant to Section 372.1(1) of The Insurance Act of Manitoba, no licensed insurance agent shall carry on the activities of an insurance agent while he or she is not insured under a policy of liability insurance that meets the requirements of subsection 371(1.1).
In addition, Section 372.1(2) of The Insurance Act of Manitoba states, a licensed insurance agent whose liability insurance lapses, or is cancelled by the agent or the insurer, shall notify the Insurance Council of Manitoba without delay.
Telephone: 204-988-6800
Individuals who qualify are former licensees who last held a licence within the past 3 years. Former licensees who held a licence over 3 years ago would not qualify for a reinstatement, and would be considered “NEW” applicants.
There are two (2) types of reinstatements:
- Reinstatement for a former licensee who last held a Manitoba licence within this licence year but the licence has since been cancelled.
OR - Reinstatement and Renewal for a former licensee who last held a Manitoba licence in the prior 2 licence years.
Steps to apply for a reinstatement include the following:
- Full completion of the online “reinstatement” application form – login to the Online Portal, and follow the steps in the User Guide – to Reinstate a Licence for assistance.
- The reinstatement fee of $70.00 must be paid within the online application by credit card (VISA or MASTERCARD only).
- All other items as outlined within the quick checklist in the User Guide – to Reinstate a Licence. Please note that criminal record checks are NOT required for reinstatement purposes unless the former licensee’s criminal history has changed.
- Additional items required for “Reinstatement and Renewal”:
- The annual licence fee (fees are outlined within the fee schedule) – only required when reinstating and renewing the licence, and must be paid within the online application by credit card (VISA or MASTERCARD only);
- Entry of the annual Continuing Education (CE) hours in the online portal (not applicable to Hail adjusters or non-residents residing in a Canadian jurisdiction that has CE requirements in the adjuster’s home jurisdiction) for the year the former licensee is reinstating (i.e. if someone is reinstating Aug 2019, they would require 8 credits accumulated from July 1, 2018 to June 30, 2019 or present). Refer to the information in the User Guide – Instructions to enter your continuing education credits to assist you with entering these credit hours; and
- A new criminal record check is only required if the former licensee has been unlicensed for over 12 months or if their criminal history has changed.
Important Note: Applications submitted to the ICM office that are missing items are considered incomplete and will be returned to the applicant for completion, thus delaying the potential issuing of a licence.