Last reviewed: 1 October 2026

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How to check an insurance agent's license in Florida

The short answer: use the Florida Department of Financial Services (DFS) Licensee Search, where the form takes a name, a Florida license number or a National Producer Number and can filter for valid or invalid licenses.^[1] Florida law says no one may act as an insurance agent unless the department has licensed them and an appropriate person or entity has appointed them.^[3] Our general licensing guide covers what applies in every state. This page covers only the Florida tools, and what Florida's own pages say each one does.

Why it matters

Section 626.112 of the Florida Statutes says no person may be, act as, or advertise or hold themselves out as an insurance agent, adjuster or customer representative unless currently licensed by the department and appointed by an appropriate appointing entity or person.^[3] DFS's licensing page adds that all licenses require an appointment except insurance agency licenses.^[2] So in Florida a license and an appointment are two separate things to look for. This page is about Florida only, and only about United States insurance regulators.

Sources

This guide draws on the Licensee Search form, DFS's licensing and consumer-help pages, the statute, and the two order-search pages DFS links to, all checked on 1 October 2026. It describes the search form and what DFS says about it; it does not report any person's or company's record. The Licensee Search form carries DFS's own disclaimer: the information is "not guaranteed to be accurate or timely," and DFS does not guarantee "its suitability for any purpose."^[1]

Step 1: get the name, license number or NPN

Ask the agent for their full name as licensed and their Florida license number. The search form also has a field for a National Producer Number (NPN), the number that ties a producer's licenses together across states (see our general guide).^[1] For an agency, the form has a separate agency or firm name field.^[1]

Step 2: run the Licensee Search

DFS's Licensee Search form lets you search by individual first and last name, agency or firm name, Florida license number or NPN. It also has a license status filter (valid, invalid or both), a resident or non-resident filter, and a license category list that includes property and casualty, life and annuity, health insurance agency, surplus lines, title, adjuster and bail bonds, among others.^[1] If you know which kind of insurance you were sold, choosing that category narrows the list. Our lines of authority guide explains why the category matters as much as the status.

Step 3: check the appointment, not only the license

The same form has an appointment section where you can filter by appointing entity, appointment category and appointment status (active or inactive), and a box for "Only Licensees with No Qualifying Appointment."^[1] The statute requires an appointment for an agent to act,^[3] so the appointment is worth checking separately. The form does not say what the results screen shows for each person, so use the form's own fields and see our appointment verification guide for what to confirm and with whom.

Step 4: look for enforcement orders

The Licensee Search page has an "Enforcement Actions" section with two links: one for final orders issued on or before 1 July 2015, and one for orders issued after that date.^[1] The first leads to DFS's Final Order Index, which says it contains final orders issued from 2003 up to 1 July 2015, and points to DFS's Public Records Unit for anything earlier.^[4] For orders on or after 1 July 2015 the index page sends you to the Division of Administrative Hearings, which it describes as "statutorily designated as the official compilation of administrative final orders for all agencies" from that date.^[4] The Division's Florida Agency Indexed Orders search lists the Department of Financial Services among the agencies you can select.^[5] Our guide to reading a state disciplinary record explains what to look for inside an order. A name that does not turn up is not proof of a clean record: two separate systems cover two date ranges, and spelling or business-name differences can hide a match.

The Florida routes at a glance

What a clean result does not tell you

A valid license does not show that the person is authorized for the specific product being pitched (see lines of authority), is appointed by the specific insurer named (see why appointment matters), has no disciplinary record (the Florida order searches in step 4 are separate systems from the Licensee Search) (see how to search a disciplinary record), or is the right person to advise you. It also says nothing about how an insurer treats its customers; for that, see how to use the NAIC Consumer Insurance Search and what the NAIC Complaint Index measures.

If something looks wrong

DFS's consumer-help page says to contact the insurance company first and give it the chance to resolve the problem, and that most issues can be resolved within 30 days.^[6] DFS says its Division can help with concerns about agents and agencies, with examples that include sales misrepresentations,^[6] for policies purchased in Florida; for a policy bought in another state, DFS says to contact that state's insurance office.^[6] DFS says insurance companies and agencies have 14 days by statute to respond to the department once a concern is filed, and that it strives to resolve concerns within 30 days.^[6] It also lists what it cannot do, including giving legal advice and compelling a refund or payment where no law, rule or policy provision has been violated.^[6] DFS asks you to gather the exact company name, the full name of any agent involved, your policy number, and copies of supporting documents, and to submit through its Consumer Assistance Portal.^[6] The page carries a Public Record Notice, so read it before you decide what to include.^[6] Our complaint guide covers what a useful complaint contains.

If your agent is not licensed in Florida

Another state has its own tool and its own rules. The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) says to start at its consumer page, select your state and follow it to that state's consumer complaint page.^[7] We also have guides for Texas, New York, California and Pennsylvania. For how Florida licensing differs from other states, see Florida insurance producer licensing. For Canada, see the Canadian guide. This site covers United States agents and law only.

When we will update this page

We re-read this page when DFS changes the Licensee Search, its enforcement-order links or its consumer-help process. If something here is out of date, tell us; corrections are dated on the page.

References

1. [1] Florida Department of Financial Services, Licensee Search form, read 1 October 2026 — licenseesearch.fldfs.com/
2. [2] Florida Department of Financial Services, "Insurance Licensing Information", read 1 October 2026 — www.myfloridacfo.com/division/agents/licensing
3. [3] Florida Statutes, s. 626.112 (2026 edition, Online Sunshine), read 1 October 2026 — www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=0600-0699/0626/Sections/0626.112.html
4. [4] Florida Department of Financial Services, Final Order Index (FOIX), read 1 October 2026 — finalorders.fldfs.com/ExternalWebAccess.aspx
5. [5] Florida Division of Administrative Hearings, Florida Agency Indexed Orders search, read 1 October 2026 — www.doah.state.fl.us/FLAIO/
6. [6] Florida Department of Financial Services, "Get Insurance Help", read 1 October 2026 — www.myfloridacfo.com/division/consumers/needourhelp
7. [7] National Association of Insurance Commissioners, "How to File a Complaint and Research Complaints Against Insurance Carriers" (1 September 2022), read 1 October 2026 — content.naic.org/article/how-file-complaint-and-research-complaints-against-insurance-carriers