Virginia Property & Casualty Insurance License Exam Overview
The Virginia Property & Casualty Insurance License Exam is administered by Prometric on behalf of the Virginia State Corporation Commission Bureau of Insurance. Virginia is the twelfth-largest state by population, with Northern Virginia's proximity to Washington DC creating unique commercial insurance opportunities.
Passing this exam qualifies you to sell property insurance, auto insurance, liability coverage, and related products throughout Virginia—a state with over 8.6 million residents and strong demand from federal contractors, military personnel, and growing technology companies.
Exam Format at a Glance
| Component | Details |
|---|---|
| Total Questions | 145 (135 scored + 10 unscored pretest) |
| Scored Questions | 135 four-option multiple-choice |
| Time Limit | 2.5 hours (150 minutes) |
| Passing Score | Scaled score of 70 |
| Testing Vendor | Prometric (Series 11-03) |
| Exam Fee | $35 per attempt |
| Pre-licensing Education | None required (only Title licenses need 16 hours) |
Virginia administers a single combined Property & Casualty exam (Series 11-03) -- there is no separate "Property" and "Casualty" sitting. Passing it covers Personal Lines, so do not apply for both. Virginia is unusual in that it does not mandate any pre-licensing education for the P&C license, though study is still strongly recommended. The two valid forms of government ID requirement and the 2.5-hour clock are confirmed in the official Virginia Bureau of Insurance Licensing Information Bulletin.
Why Get P&C Licensed in Virginia?
- DC metro access — Northern Virginia federal contractor market
- Military market — Large military and veteran population
- Growing tech sector — Amazon HQ2 and tech companies
- High income levels — Strong demand for coverage
- Competitive compensation — Average P&C agent salary over $65,000
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Key Topics Covered on the Exam (Official Series 11-03 Weights)
The Virginia P&C exam blueprint has ten sections. Match your study hours to these official weights from the Prometric content outline -- Auto, Insurance Regulation, and the two Homeowners/P&C-Basics sections together make up more than half the test.
| # | Section | Weight | Scored Items |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Insurance Regulation (Virginia law, Title 38.2) | 15% | 20 |
| 2 | General Insurance (risk, contracts, agency) | 9% | 12 |
| 3 | Property & Casualty Insurance Basics | 13% | 18 |
| 4 | Dwelling Policy (DP-1, DP-2, DP-3) | 5% | 7 |
| 5 | Homeowners Policy (HO-3, HO-4, HO-5, HO-6) | 13% | 18 |
| 6 | Auto Insurance | 16% | 21 |
| 7 | Commercial Package Policy (CPP) | 12% | 16 |
| 8 | Businessowners Policy (BOP) | 5% | 7 |
| 9 | Workers Compensation Insurance | 7% | 9 |
| 10 | Other Coverages and Options | 5% | 7 |
Insurance Regulation (15%) -- Virginia's Biggest Single Bucket
This is the most heavily weighted section, so do not treat state law as an afterthought:
- Producer licensing, appointment, and termination rules (Title 38.2-1800 series)
- Unfair trade practices: misrepresentation, false advertising, defamation, coercion, unfair discrimination, rebating
- State Corporation Commission powers, record retention, fiduciary/trust-account duties
- Federal overlay: Fair Credit Reporting Act and 18 USC 1033/1034 fraud statutes
Property Sections (Dwelling 5% + Homeowners 13% + P&C Basics 13%)
- HO-3, HO-4 (tenants), HO-5 (comprehensive), HO-6 (condo) and the DP-1/DP-2/DP-3 dwelling forms
- Coverage A (Dwelling), B (Other Structures), C (Personal Property), D (Loss of Use), E (Personal Liability), F (Medical Payments)
- Replacement cost vs. actual cash value, named vs. open perils, coinsurance, deductibles
- Virginia-specific: Virginia Property Insurance Association (FAIR plan, the residual market), flood exclusion (38.2-2125), earthquake exclusion (38.2-2129), and owner-occupied dwelling cancellation/nonrenewal rules
Auto Insurance (16%) -- The Largest Section
- Virginia Motor Vehicle Financial Responsibility Law and required limits (see updated minimums below)
- Personal Auto Policy structure: liability, medical expense benefits, UM/UIM, damage to your auto
- Cancellation and nonrenewal rules (38.2-2208, 2212) and the Virginia Automobile Insurance Plan (assigned risk)
- Commercial auto: covered-auto symbols, garagekeepers, trailer interchange
Casualty, Commercial, and Workers Comp (CPP 12% + BOP 5% + WC 7% + Other 5%)
- Commercial General Liability: occurrence vs. claims-made, products/completed operations, personal and advertising injury
- Commercial property, crime, inland marine, equipment breakdown, and farm forms
- Virginia Workers' Compensation: coverage is required for employers regularly employing more than two (3+) employees, administered through the Virginia Workers' Compensation Commission with an assigned-risk plan
- Umbrella/excess, professional liability (E&O), surplus lines, surety bonds, and the National Flood Insurance Program
Study Timeline for Success
| Week | Focus Area | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1-2 | Property insurance fundamentals | 10-12 |
| Week 2-3 | Liability insurance | 10-12 |
| Week 3-4 | Auto insurance and Virginia requirements | 10-12 |
| Week 4-5 | Virginia regulations (Title 38.2) | 6-8 |
| Week 5 | Practice exams and review | 10-12 |
Total recommended study time: 50-60 hours
🎯 Free Practice Questions Available
Test your knowledge with hundreds of free practice questions designed specifically for the Virginia P&C exam.
Virginia-Specific Exam Tips
1. Know the CURRENT Virginia Auto Minimums (50/100/25)
Virginia raised its minimum liability limits to 50/100/25 for all auto policies effective on or after January 1, 2025 (SB 112). The old 30/60/20 figure is outdated:
- $50,000 per person bodily injury
- $100,000 per accident bodily injury
- $25,000 property damage
2. The $500 Uninsured Motor Vehicle Fee Is GONE
This is the single most important update for 2026. Virginia eliminated the $500 uninsured motor vehicle (UMV) fee on July 1, 2024. Drivers can no longer pay a fee to register and drive an uninsured vehicle -- liability insurance is now mandatory for all registered vehicles. Any prep material still describing the $500 fee as a current option is out of date.
3. Understand VPIA (the FAIR Plan)
The Virginia Property Insurance Association (38.2-2700) provides:
- Essential property coverage for high-risk properties
- Residual market access when standard carriers decline
- Basic fire and extended coverage
4. Key Numbers to Remember
| Topic | Virginia Requirement |
|---|---|
| Auto minimums | 50/100/25 (since Jan 1, 2025) |
| UMV fee | Eliminated July 1, 2024 -- insurance now mandatory |
| WC threshold | More than two (3+) employees |
| Pre-licensing | None required for P&C |
| CE requirement | 16 hours every 2 years (3 ethics) |
| Passing score | Scaled score of 70 |
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Using old auto minimums — Virginia is now 50/100/25, not 30/60/20
- Citing the $500 UMV fee as current — it was repealed July 1, 2024; insurance is mandatory
- Skipping workers' comp — the 3+ employee threshold is tested
- Ignoring coastal coverage — flood exclusion and Tidewater exposure
- Not practicing timed exams — 2.5 hours for 145 questions
- Cramming last minute — spread study over 5-6 weeks
After Passing Your Exam
- Obtain your CHRR — request a Criminal History Record Report from the Virginia State Police (must be less than 90 days old)
- Apply online — submit through Sircon or NIPR within 183 days of passing
- Pay the license fee — roughly $15 state application fee per line (plus a small NIPR transaction fee)
- Affiliate with an insurer — you must be appointed by a carrier before you can be paid commissions
- Maintain CE compliance — 16 hours every 2 years (including 3 hours of ethics) for a single-line P&C producer
- Renew on your birthday cycle — since 2021, Virginia licenses expire at the end of your birth month in odd or even years matching your birth year
2026 Virginia Updates
Three recent statutory changes are likely to appear on the exam and matter in practice:
- Mandatory auto insurance (July 1, 2024): Virginia repealed the $500 uninsured motor vehicle fee; all registered vehicles must now carry liability coverage.
- Higher minimum limits (Jan 1, 2025): liability minimums rose from 30/60/20 to 50/100/25 under SB 112.
- CE pacing (effective Feb 1, 2026): no more than 12 CE hours may be completed within any 24-hour period.
Always confirm the current content outline and fees on the Prometric Virginia site before you schedule, because Virginia revises its blueprint periodically.
Start Your Virginia P&C Insurance Career Today
The Virginia P&C license opens doors to one of the nation's most affluent insurance markets. With proper preparation, you can pass the exam on your first attempt.
Our free study materials include:
- ✅ Complete topic coverage
- ✅ Practice questions with explanations
- ✅ Virginia-specific regulations (Title 38.2)
- ✅ Study guides and summaries
- ✅ AI-powered study assistance
Don't pay for expensive prep courses when everything you need is available FREE.
How to Verify the Rules Before You Schedule
Use this guide for exam strategy, then confirm the current licensing steps with official sources before you pay for an appointment. Property and casualty licensing is state-administered, and administrative details can change even when the insurance concepts stay the same. Check the Virginia insurance department first, then the testing vendor candidate handbook, then the application path used after passing. The NAIC state insurance department directory is the safest way to find the current regulator site, and NIPR state requirements can help you confirm post-exam application steps where NIPR is used.
For exam content, keep two buckets separate. The national bucket includes property policies, casualty policies, liability principles, negligence, risk management, policy structure, exclusions, conditions, endorsements, and claims concepts. The Virginia bucket includes regulator authority, producer licensing, unfair practices, cancellation and nonrenewal rules, state auto requirements, residual market mechanisms, and local compliance duties. When a question includes a deadline, dollar limit, filing duty, required notice, or licensing step, ask whether it is a general insurance concept or a Virginia rule.
What to Master for Property Questions
Property questions reward careful reading. Know the difference between named-peril and open-peril coverage, replacement cost and actual cash value, direct and indirect loss, vacancy and unoccupancy, and first-party property coverage versus third-party liability. Homeowners forms are a frequent source of points because the forms look similar but solve different problems. Practice identifying who is insured, what property is covered, which location qualifies as the residence premises, and whether the loss is excluded before an endorsement changes the answer.
Do not treat deductibles, limits, and valuation as afterthoughts. A question may describe a covered loss but test whether the settlement is reduced by deductible, limited by a sublimit, valued at actual cash value, or excluded because the cause of loss is not covered. Commercial property questions add business personal property, business income, extra expense, equipment breakdown, inland marine, and builder's risk concepts. For commercial forms, focus on why a business would need the coverage and what exposure remains if it does not have it.
What to Master for Casualty and Liability Questions
Casualty questions often turn on liability logic. Before choosing an answer, identify the claimant, the insured, the alleged injury or damage, and the legal theory. Negligence questions usually require duty, breach, causation, and damages. Liability policy questions ask whether the policy responds to bodily injury, property damage, personal and advertising injury, medical payments, or a specifically excluded exposure.
For auto, separate personal auto policy structure from state financial responsibility requirements. You need to know liability, medical payments or personal injury protection where relevant, uninsured and underinsured motorist concepts, damage to your auto, covered auto definitions, exclusions, and endorsements. For commercial auto, pay attention to covered auto symbols, hired and non-owned autos, business use, and garage exposures. For workers' compensation, separate statutory benefits from employer liability and remember that workers' compensation is not ordinary negligence coverage.
Final Two-Week Study Plan
In the first week, rotate by coverage family: homeowners and dwelling property, commercial property, personal auto, commercial auto, general liability, workers' compensation, and Virginia law. After every practice set in /study-guides/va-property-casualty, write down whether each miss was caused by vocabulary, form structure, state rule, or careless reading. Vocabulary misses need flashcards. Form structure misses need diagrams. State-rule misses need a one-page Virginia checklist. Careless reading needs slower question markup.
In the second week, stop studying by chapter only. The actual exam mixes topics, so your practice should mix them too. Use timed sets and force yourself to decide quickly whether the question is asking about coverage trigger, excluded cause, valuation, limit, condition, producer conduct, or state filing rule. Review explanations immediately. The review is where your score improves; simply taking more questions without fixing the reason for misses mostly measures the same weakness again.
Common P&C Exam Traps
One trap is choosing the coverage that sounds familiar instead of the coverage that fits the loss. A flood loss, an employee injury, a professional advice claim, a business income interruption, and a personal auto collision may all involve money damages, but they do not belong in the same policy part. Another trap is ignoring who owns the property or who is legally liable. Property insurance usually protects the insured's financial interest in property; liability insurance responds to claims made by others against the insured.
Cancellation and nonrenewal questions also deserve attention. The exam may test required notice, permitted reasons, timing, or who has authority to act. If the question is state-specific, do not rely on a generic national rule. Unfair trade practice questions work the same way: rebating, twisting, misrepresentation, false advertising, unfair claims handling, and fiduciary misuse of premiums are tested because they show whether a producer can operate lawfully after the exam.
Exam-Day Workflow
Confirm your appointment, identification, remote-proctoring rules, allowed materials, and reschedule deadline before test day. At check-in, your legal name should match the exam registration. During the test, take the easy points first. If a scenario is long, identify the policy, the insured, the covered property or claimant, the cause of loss, and the question's command word. If two answers are legally true, choose the one that answers the exact fact pattern.
If you miss the passing score, use the report as a map. Rebuild the two weakest content areas, then retest with mixed questions. Candidates often improve fastest by mastering policy architecture: declarations, insuring agreement, conditions, exclusions, definitions, and endorsements. Once you can locate where a rule lives inside the policy, unfamiliar questions become easier to reason through.
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