- HI-ADJ is the Hawaii Adjuster Exam administered by Pearson VUE for the DCCA Insurance Division.
- The exam has 80 scoreable questions plus 10 unscored pretest items in 105 minutes; passing is a scaled 70.
- Domains 1-3 each carry 16 scoreable questions - the largest weight in the outline.
- The exam fee is $75 per attempt; initial license filing adds a separate $165 fee.
What Is HI-ADJ, Exactly?
HI-ADJ refers to the Hawaii Adjuster Exam - the state licensing test that both independent and public insurance adjusters must pass before they can legally handle claims in Hawaii. The exam is governed by the Hawaii Insurance Division within the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA), and it is delivered through Pearson VUE, either at a physical test center or through the OnVUE online proctoring option.
Despite covering two license types, there is only one examination. Independent adjuster and public adjuster candidates sit for the same content, using test-center code InsHI-Adj14 or online code OPAdj14, and then apply for separate licenses based on the type of work they intend to do. If you're still mapping out what the credential actually requires day-to-day, the HI-ADJ Requirements 2026 guide breaks down eligibility item by item.
Who Hires HI-ADJ Licensees
Independent adjusters are typically retained by insurance carriers or independent adjusting firms to investigate and settle claims on the insurer's behalf, especially during high-volume catastrophe periods when local staff adjusters need reinforcement. Public adjusters, by contrast, are hired directly by policyholders - homeowners, condo associations, and business owners - to represent their interests when negotiating a claim settlement with an insurance company.
Because Hawaii's geography and climate produce recurring property exposures (hurricanes, flooding, lava-related risk in specific counties, and wind damage), both adjuster types stay active well beyond initial storm response. If you're weighing whether pursuing licensure makes sense for your career plans, the analysis in Is the HI-ADJ Certification Worth It? and the field-specific detail in HI-ADJ Jobs are useful next reads.
Exam Format and Scoring
The HI-ADJ exam is computer-based and closed-book. Candidates are presented with 90 total questions - 80 that count toward the score and 10 unscored pretest items mixed in without identification - and must complete everything within 105 minutes. Because the pretest questions are indistinguishable from scored ones, every question on screen should be treated as if it counts.
Passing requires a scaled score of 70, which is not the same as answering 70 percent of questions correctly. Scaled scoring adjusts for question difficulty across the pool, so raw percentage estimates from memory after the exam are unreliable. For a full breakdown of how the scaling works and what it means for your prep target, see HI-ADJ Passing Score 2026.
Key Takeaway
Don't try to reverse-engineer your score from memory after the test. Focus preparation on mastering each domain's content rather than chasing a percentage target.
The Six HI-ADJ Content Domains
The current content outline, effective January 1, 2026, organizes the exam into six domains. The first three domains are tied for the heaviest weighting on the test, each contributing 16 scoreable questions, while the final two domains cover a range rather than a fixed count.
Domain 1: Types of Policies, Bonds, and Related Terms (16 questions)
Candidates must recognize the structure and purpose of major policy types and bond categories used in the adjusting field.
- Distinguishing property, casualty, and specialty policy forms
- Understanding bond terminology and its distinction from insurance coverage
Domain 2: Insurance Terms and Related Concepts (16 questions)
This domain tests foundational vocabulary and concepts that underpin every other section of the exam.
- Core terms like indemnity, subrogation, and insurable interest
- Concepts that recur across policy provisions and claims scenarios
Domain 3: Policy Provisions and Contracts (16 questions)
Focuses on how policy language is constructed and interpreted in practice.
- Standard contract provisions and endorsements
- How exclusions, conditions, and definitions interact in a real claim
Domain 4: Hawaii Laws and Rules Pertinent to Adjuster (12 questions)
Covers the statutory and regulatory framework specific to adjusters operating in Hawaii.
- Licensing statutes and DCCA oversight authority
- General conduct and compliance obligations for adjusters
Domain 5: Hawaii Laws and Rules Pertinent to Property Insurance Only (6-8 questions)
Applies Hawaii-specific statutes to property claims scenarios.
- State rules governing property claim handling and settlement timelines
- Property-specific disclosure and documentation requirements
Domain 6: Hawaii Laws and Rules Pertinent to Casualty Insurance Only (12-14 questions)
Applies Hawaii-specific statutes to casualty claims, the second-largest domain by weight.
- Casualty claim handling rules unique to Hawaii statute
- Interaction between state casualty law and general adjuster duties
For a deeper walkthrough of each domain's subtopics and how heavily to weight your review time, the HI-ADJ Exam Domains 2026 guide maps every content area in detail, and the HI-ADJ Cheat Sheet condenses the must-know facts into a one-page review.
| Domain | Topic | Scoreable Questions |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Types of Policies, Bonds, and Related Terms | 16 |
| 2 | Insurance Terms and Related Concepts | 16 |
| 3 | Policy Provisions and Contracts | 16 |
| 4 | Hawaii Laws and Rules Pertinent to Adjuster | 12 |
| 5 | Hawaii Laws and Rules Pertinent to Property Insurance Only | 6-8 |
| 6 | Hawaii Laws and Rules Pertinent to Casualty Insurance Only | 12-14 |
Registration, Fees, and Eligibility
Scheduling the HI-ADJ exam through Pearson VUE costs $75 per attempt, and that fee applies each time you sit for the test regardless of test-center or OnVUE delivery. Before you're eligible to register, you must meet the state's baseline requirements:
- Be at least 18 years old
- Be domiciled in Hawaii, or in a state that permits Hawaii residents to act as adjusters there
- Have sufficient claims-handling experience, special education, or training to competently perform adjuster duties
Ordinary resident and nonresident applicants both must pass the same Hawaii exam. There is a separate emergency nonresident registration route, but it only applies when tied to a qualifying emergency declaration - it is not a general substitute for the standard exam. Resident applicants also need to complete Fieldprint fingerprinting before submitting their application through NIPR. Nonresident candidates working through reciprocity should review HI-ADJ Requirements 2026 for the exact documentation sequence, since the fingerprinting step and NIPR filing order matter.
A full cost accounting - exam fee, retake scenarios, fingerprinting, and licensing charges together - is laid out in HI-ADJ Certification Cost 2026. And if you're trying to figure out realistic scheduling windows around retake waits and license processing, HI-ADJ Exam Dates 2026 covers the timing mechanics.
Licensing After You Pass
Passing the exam is only the first step. The initial resident independent or public adjuster license carries a $165 filing fee per license, separate from the exam fee, fingerprinting cost, and any NIPR transaction charges. Public adjuster applicants have an additional requirement: a $10,000 surety bond must be submitted within seven days of application. Independent adjusters do not need this bond. It's worth noting that the bond's face value is not the premium you actually pay for it - the $10,000 figure represents the coverage amount, not the cost.
Once licensed, renewal happens through NIPR by your assigned birth-month-end expiration date, and the renewal fee is $90. The renewal window opens 90 days before expiration, giving a reasonable buffer to complete the filing. Independent and public adjuster licenses carry no continuing-education requirement - a notable difference from many other adjuster license types. The one exception is the separate limited workers compensation adjuster license, which requires its own examination and requires reexamination again at renewal.
Key Takeaway
Budget for the $75 exam fee and the $165 license fee as two distinct costs - passing the exam does not automatically activate your license.
Scheduling Your Prep Around the Domains
Because Domains 1, 2, and 3 together account for 48 of the 80 scoreable questions, the most efficient prep sequence front-loads general insurance knowledge before moving into Hawaii-specific statute. A practical order looks like this:
Domains 1-2
- Build fluency with policy types, bonds, and core insurance terminology
- Use flashcards for repeated exposure to definitions that appear across multiple domains
Domain 3
- Work through sample policy provisions and contract language
- Practice identifying exclusions versus conditions in scenario questions
Domains 4-6
- Shift to Hawaii statute: adjuster conduct rules, then property-specific rules, then casualty-specific rules
- Since Domain 6 carries more weight than Domain 5, allocate proportionally more review time to casualty statute
Full Review
- Run timed practice sessions that mimic the 105-minute, 90-question format
- Revisit weak domains identified during practice testing
This sequencing isn't a generic study template - it's built around the fact that the first three domains dominate the scoreable question count while the last two are Hawaii-statute-specific and easier to cram closer to test day. For a more detailed week-by-week plan and first-attempt strategy, see the HI-ADJ Study Guide 2026. If you're still calibrating how much difficulty to expect, How Hard Is the HI-ADJ Exam? and HI-ADJ Pass Rate 2026 both address that question using only verified data rather than guesswork.
Running full-length timed simulations on our Hawaii adjuster practice test platform before test day is one of the most reliable ways to confirm you can sustain accuracy across all 90 questions within the 105-minute window, since pacing pressure is different from studying material in isolation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Both license types sit for the identical Hawaii Adjuster Exam content, using different registration codes (InsHI-Adj14 for test center, OPAdj14 for online), and then apply for separate licenses afterward.
You'll see 90 total questions - 80 scoreable and 10 unscored pretest questions mixed in without labels - and you have 105 minutes to complete the closed-book, computer-based exam.
You need a scaled score of 70, which is not the same as getting 70 percent of questions correct. The scaling adjusts for item difficulty, so it isn't a simple raw percentage.
Yes. Public adjuster applicants must submit a $10,000 surety bond within seven days of application. Independent adjusters are not required to carry this bond.
After a failed OnVUE attempt, the first retake requires a two-week wait, and later OnVUE retakes require four weeks. Test-center-to-test-center retakes only require a 24-hour wait.