Kentucky ruling adds to squeeze on public adjusters

A Kentucky district court judge has dismissed a lawsuit challenging a new law that prohibits public adjusters from negotiating with insurers, following a nationwide trend. 

Catch up quick: A Kentucky law passed in April 2026 prohibits public adjusters in the state from negotiating insurance claims for policyholders for two years.

• Brandi Dawn Carroll and several other public adjusters challenged the law’s constitutionality, but the court dismissed the case late last month.
• The new policy doesn’t eliminate public adjusters altogether, but it specifies that they can’t negotiate claim amounts with insurers. 

Why it matters: Dozens of states already prohibit contractors from negotiating directly with insurance companies, and with more states cracking down on public adjusters, fewer people will be able to fight insurance companies on claims.

• The lawsuit is part of a national trend defanging the public adjusting profession, which is facing tighter control from multiple states.
• Kansas proposed a similar bill to Kentucky’s in this year’s legislative session, but it died in committee.
• Additionally, Massachusetts and Florida are engaged in active litigation over insurance policies that prohibit the insured from hiring a public adjuster.

What they’re saying: “Like it or not, insurance claims are a naturally adversarial process,” Caeden Tinklenberg, president of the American Adjuster Association, told Homepros in an interview. “So [insurers are] systematically trying to remove or at the very least reduce access to advocates for their policyholders.”

• “[Try to] align with the other professionals within these spaces,” he said. “It’s not contractors versus public adjusters — it’s advocates for the insured, for the consumer, versus insurance companies.”

Go deeper: James Uthmeier, Florida’s Attorney General, last month launched an investigation into Velocity Risk Underwriters, the company locked in a legal battle in Massachusetts, over “possible illegal agreements involving insurance policy rules that stop homeowners from hiring their own licensed public adjusters,” according to a press release. 

• Public adjusters in the state have also brought a civil case against the company.

Yes, but: A few states, including Louisiana, have given public adjusters broader protections, prohibiting insurance companies from codifying policies that don’t allow policyholders to hire public adjusters to work a claim. 

What we’re watching: Tinklenberg said he’s noticed that public adjusters have been popular “cannon fodder” for politicians and insurance lobbyists in the past few years. 

• He’s been on both sides. He used to work for a restoration contractor that dealt with insurance claims, but when an Iowa appeals court barred contractors from acting as public adjusters, he switched professions.
• With the new legislation, Kentuckians may need to hire an attorney to negotiate directly with insurers, which Tinklenberg says — by the nature of cost — will limit the number of consumers who can fight back against a claim.