- Series 17-70 has 100 scored questions across 16 domains, plus up to 10 unscored pilot items.
- Adjusting Losses is the largest domain at 11% of the exam - master it first.
- Homeowners (2011) Policy (10%), Auto Insurance (9%), and CPP (9%) together make up nearly a third of the test.
- Aviation Hull, Aircraft Liability, and Surety Bonds are each only 2-3% but still testable.
Exam Overview: Format, Fee, and Scoring
The New York Independent General Adjuster Exam (Series 17-70) is a closed-book, multiple-choice test regulated by the New York State Department of Financial Services and delivered through PSI. Candidates get 100 scored questions and a two-hour clock, with a 70% score required to pass. PSI sometimes slips in five to 10 additional unscored experimental questions that look identical to the real ones, so there's no reliable way to tell which items count - treat every question with equal seriousness.
There's no prelicensing course requirement for independent adjusters in New York, which means the 16 content domains listed in the PSI candidate bulletin (last updated April 28, 2023) are effectively your entire syllabus. You can sit for the exam at a physical PSI test center or through remote proctoring, and the exam fee is $40. If you're still deciding whether the license is worth pursuing at all, our ROI analysis of the NY-IA certification breaks down the bigger picture beyond just the test.
All 16 Content Domains Explained
Each domain below reflects the exact percentage weighting from the PSI bulletin for Series 17-70. Multiply the percentage by 100 to estimate roughly how many scored questions come from that area.
| Domain | Weight | Approx. Questions |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Insurance Regulation | 6% | ~6 |
| 2. Insurance Basics | 6% | ~6 |
| 3. Adjusting Losses | 11% | ~11 |
| 4. Accident and Health Insurance Basics | 6% | ~6 |
| 5. Understanding the Language of Medical Reports | 4% | ~4 |
| 6. Dwelling (2014) Policy | 6% | ~6 |
| 7. Homeowners (2011) Policy | 10% | ~10 |
| 8. Auto Insurance | 9% | ~9 |
| 9. Commercial Package Policy (CPP) | 9% | ~9 |
| 10. Businessowners (2010) Policy | 8% | ~8 |
| 11. Workers' Compensation Insurance | 6% | ~6 |
| 12. Surety Bonds | 2% | ~2 |
| 13. Fidelity Coverages | 3% | ~3 |
| 14. Aviation Hull Coverages | 3% | ~3 |
| 15. Aircraft Liability Coverages | 3% | ~3 |
| 16. Other Coverages and Options | 8% | ~8 |
If you want a condensed reference of these weights and the highest-yield terminology for each, the NY-IA cheat sheet is built specifically for last-week review.
The Heavy-Weight Domains You Can't Skip
Domain 3: Adjusting Losses (11%)
This is the single largest domain on Series 17-70, and it's also the most procedural. It covers how an independent adjuster actually investigates, evaluates, and settles a claim - not just what a policy says, but how a claim moves from first notice of loss to payment.
- Duties owed to the insurer and the claimant during investigation
- Proof of loss requirements and documentation standards
- Valuation methods: actual cash value vs. replacement cost
- Subrogation, salvage, and appraisal clauses
- Unfair claims settlement practices to avoid
Domain 7: Homeowners (2011) Policy (10%)
The second-largest domain by weight. Expect detailed questions on policy forms, coverage parts, exclusions, and endorsements specific to the 2011 homeowners form referenced in the bulletin.
- Coverage A through D distinctions and dollar limit relationships
- Named-peril vs. open-peril coverage forms
- Common exclusions (flood, earth movement, ordinance or law)
- Liability and medical payments to others sections
Domain 8: Auto Insurance (9%) and Domain 9: Commercial Package Policy (9%)
Auto Insurance blends New York no-fault concepts with standard liability and physical damage coverage parts. Commercial Package Policy (CPP) requires you to understand how monoline coverages combine into a package - property, general liability, crime, and inland marine can all show up as CPP components.
- PIP/no-fault basics as they interact with liability claims
- Comprehensive vs. collision distinctions
- CPP structure: common policy conditions plus coverage parts
- How CPP differs structurally from a monoline policy
The Lighter Domains: Aviation, Surety, Fidelity, and More
Several domains carry small individual weights but collectively still account for a meaningful chunk of the exam. Skipping them entirely is a common - and costly - mistake.
Domain 14: Aviation Hull Coverages (3%) and Domain 15: Aircraft Liability Coverages (3%)
Together these two aviation-specific domains make up 6% of the exam, roughly the same weight as Insurance Regulation or Workers' Compensation. Candidates often underestimate this pairing because it feels niche.
- Physical damage coverage for the aircraft itself (hull)
- Liability exposures unique to aircraft operations
- Key exclusions distinguishing aviation forms from general property/liability forms
Domain 12: Surety Bonds (2%) and Domain 13: Fidelity Coverages (3%)
Surety bonds involve three parties (principal, obligee, surety) and function differently from insurance - there's no risk-sharing, only a guarantee with a right of indemnification. Fidelity coverages protect against employee dishonesty. Both are small domains but conceptually distinct from everything else on the exam, which makes them easy to mix up under time pressure.
Domain 5: Understanding the Language of Medical Reports (4%)
This domain tests whether you can interpret medical terminology and documentation as it appears in claim files - relevant to both Accident and Health Insurance Basics and Workers' Compensation claims.
Key Takeaway
The four smallest domains (Surety Bonds, Fidelity, Aviation Hull, Aircraft Liability) total 11% combined - equal to Adjusting Losses alone. Don't treat "small" as "skip."
Mapping Domains to a Study Schedule
Rather than studying domains in the order they're listed, sequence your review by weight and by how much each domain builds on prior knowledge. A weighted approach means spending the most calendar time on Adjusting Losses, Homeowners (2011) Policy, Auto Insurance, and CPP, then circling back for the smaller domains once the fundamentals are solid.
Foundations
- Insurance Basics and Insurance Regulation (12% combined)
- Learn NY DFS licensing and application rules alongside the material
Highest-weight domain
- Adjusting Losses (11%) - claim handling, valuation, and settlement practices
Property forms
- Homeowners (2011) Policy (10%) and Dwelling (2014) Policy (6%)
Auto and commercial lines
- Auto Insurance (9%), CPP (9%), Businessowners (8%)
Health and comp
- Accident and Health Insurance Basics (6%), Workers' Compensation (6%), Medical Reports (4%)
Specialty and cleanup
- Surety Bonds, Fidelity, Aviation Hull, Aircraft Liability, Other Coverages and Options
- Full-length timed practice under two-hour conditions
This is a starting framework, not a rigid rule - some candidates compress it into three or four weeks depending on prior claims experience. For a fuller walkthrough of pacing, resources, and how to structure practice sessions around the 70% passing threshold, see the NY-IA study guide. If you want a deeper dive on exactly how the passing score is calculated, read what you need to pass the NY-IA exam.
Who Hires for This License, and Why Domains Matter on the Job
Independent adjusters licensed under Series 17-70 are typically hired by independent adjusting firms, third-party administrators, and insurance carriers that need surge capacity after catastrophic events - hail, wind, flood, or large commercial losses. Because the license doesn't require a prelicensing course, employers often lean on the exam domains themselves as a proxy for baseline competency: someone who passed Series 17-70 is presumed to understand Homeowners and Dwelling forms, Auto claims, CPP structure, and the mechanics of adjusting losses well enough to be assigned real files quickly.
This is also why the domain weights aren't arbitrary - they roughly track how often an independent adjuster in New York actually encounters each line of business in the field. Property and auto claims dominate day-to-day work, which is reflected in Homeowners, Dwelling, and Auto Insurance carrying some of the highest weights. Aviation and surety claims are rarer, hence their smaller slice of the exam.
If you're weighing this credential against other paths into claims work, our salary guide and jobs overview cover what the license opens up once you're licensed. And if you're still confirming basic eligibility before you even schedule the exam - fingerprinting, application timing, and the two-year window to apply after passing - check the NY-IA requirements page.
For a broader sense of how difficult the domain mix makes this exam relative to expectations, see how hard the NY-IA exam really is, and for scheduling logistics around when to sit for it, check NY-IA exam dates and testing windows. You can also run full-length domain-weighted practice questions on our main practice test platform to see which of the 16 domains need the most attention before exam day. Consistent practice through realistic timed simulations is the most direct way to confirm you're ready across all 16 areas, not just the ones that feel comfortable.
FAQ
Approximate question counts follow the percentage weights directly: multiply each domain's percentage by 100 scored questions. Adjusting Losses (11%) yields roughly 11 questions, while Surety Bonds (2%) yields roughly 2.
Start with Adjusting Losses since it's the largest domain at 11%, then move to Homeowners (2011) Policy at 10%. These two alone represent roughly a fifth of the scored questions.
Yes. Individually they're small (2-3% each), but Surety Bonds, Fidelity, Aviation Hull, and Aircraft Liability together total 11% of the exam - the same weight as the single largest domain, Adjusting Losses.
PSI may add five to 10 unscored experimental questions to the 100 scored questions on Series 17-70. Since you can't identify which questions are unscored, prepare across all 16 domains as if every question counts.
No. New York does not require a prelicensing course for independent adjusters, so the PSI candidate bulletin's domain outline serves as the primary study framework for Series 17-70.