Insurance companies bring experienced professionals to the claims process. Policyholders should be able to bring knowledgeable help of their own. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has opened an investigation into the issue, announcing on October 20 that his office subpoenaed Velocity Risk Underwriters over possible agreements that restrict policyholders from hiring licensed public adjusters. 1 The investigation concerns policy provisions that, according to the Attorney General, threaten the entire claim if a homeowner hires one.
The Attorney General’s public description identifies three categories of requested records. Each category could help answer important questions. How did these restrictions develop? What companies and people coordinated their adoption?
First, the office requested records concerning Velocity’s membership in trade groups. Trade associations perform many legitimate functions, and membership alone does not prove wrongdoing. These records could help investigators identify industry relationships and forums where restrictions on public adjusters might have been discussed. The relevant question is whether any association became a vehicle for coordinating conduct that unlawfully restricts competition. The Federal Trade Commission explains that otherwise unlawful conduct does not become permissible simply because it occurs through a trade association.
Second, the office requested communications with other insurance companies. Those communications could help establish who proposed the restrictions, whether companies shared policy language, and whether they discussed adopting a common approach. Similar endorsements alone do not establish an unlawful agreement. Communications may help distinguish independent business decisions from coordinated efforts to exclude public adjusters.
Third, the office requested agreements to stop homeowners from using public adjusters. Any such agreements could identify the participants, their commitments, and the intended reach of the restrictions. That evidence could be particularly significant to an antitrust inquiry because Florida law prohibits contracts, combinations, and conspiracies that unlawfully restrain trade. Whether a particular arrangement violates that law requires examination of the evidence and applicable legal standards.
Velocity has offered a response that deserves inclusion. According to Insurance Journal, the company says its Florida surplus lines policies carrying this endorsement cover commercial insureds, that it does not place personal residential homeowners’ policies in Florida, and that it is cooperating with the investigation. 2
For policyholders and public adjusters, the practical stakes are substantial. A restriction on professional assistance can affect a policyholder’s ability to document damage, evaluate an estimate, and present a claim. The subpoena does not establish misconduct, but seeking the records is a welcome step toward understanding these restrictions. When an insurer threatens coverage because its customer hires licensed help, the obvious question deserves a documented answer about the motives for placing this restriction into the policy.
1 “Attorney General James Uthmeier Launches Investigation into Homeowners Insurers for Blocking Outside Claims Assistance” Florida Office of Attorney General News Release (Oct. 20, 2026).
2 William Rabb, “Florida AG Says His Office Investigating ‘Anti-Public Adjuster’ Endorsements in Policies,” Insurance Journal (Oct. 21, 2026).
