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Pennsylvania Casualty Practice Exam

20 exam-style questions drawn from the same bank as our full Pennsylvania Casualty course (Pennsylvania Insurance Producer - Casualty - Exam Prep). Answer all 20, then grade yourself — most state exams require 70% to pass. Explanations for every question are part of the full course.

1. A consulting firm has a claims-made CGL with a retroactive date of January 1, 2023 and a policy period of January 1, 2025 to January 1, 2026. In March 2025, a client sues the firm for an occurrence that took place in November 2022. Assuming no Extended Reporting Period endorsement has been purchased and the claim is otherwise valid, does the policy respond?
Yes, because any occurrence within three years before the retroactive date is covered automatically under the standard claims-made form.Yes, because the claim was first made during the policy period, and a claims-made policy looks only at when the claim is made, not when the occurrence happened.No, the occurrence took place before the retroactive date, so the policy will not respond even though the claim was made during the policy period.No, because a claims-made CGL responds only if the occurrence and the claim both fall within the same policy period, regardless of the retroactive date.
2. A surgical instrument is left inside a patient. Which doctrine helps the claimant prove her case?
Res ipsa loquitur, which permits negligence to be inferred from the event itselfComparative negligence, which reduces damages by the claimant's own faultNegligence per se, which treats a statutory violation as the breach of dutyAssumption of risk, which shifts the burden of proof onto the defendant
3. A claims-made professional liability policy has a retroactive date of 1/1/2020. An insured event occurred in 2019 but the claim was not made until 2024 while the policy was in force. Is there coverage?
Yes, because events up to two years before the retroactive date are covered automatically under a claims-made form.No, because the claim was made more than three years after the event, which exceeds the claims-made reporting window.No, the event occurred before the retroactive date, so coverage is excluded even though the claim is timely.Yes, because the claim was first made during the policy period, which is all a claims-made form requires for coverage.
4. Is the insurer's duty to defend wider or narrower than its duty to indemnify?
Identical; both are measured by the damages the insured is obliged to payNarrower; it arises only once liability has actually been established at trialWider, but only where the insured has asked for a defence in writing firstWider; it is triggered by the allegations pleaded rather than the facts proved
5. A producer's license lapses. Within what period is reinstatement RETROACTIVE to the expiration date?
Within 90 days after lapseWithin 30 days after lapseWithin 15 days after lapseWithin 60 days after lapse
6. A contractor installs a gas water heater incorrectly. Three weeks after the job is complete, the water heater explodes, injuring the homeowner. The contractor's CGL responds under which coverage category?
Employer's liability.Premises/operations.Personal injury (Coverage B).Products-completed operations.
7. What standard governs the contents of a Pennsylvania insurer's claim file?
It must be certified by an officer of the insurer each quarterIt must be forwarded to the Department at the close of the claimIt must contain only the final settlement or denial letterIt must be detailed enough to reconstruct events and their dates
8. In a bodily injury claim, which of the following is classified as SPECIAL damages?
Punitive damages of $40,000 for gross negligenceEmotional distress of $40,000 and disfigurementMedical expenses of $40,000 and lost wages of $12,000Pain and suffering of $50,000 and loss of consortium
9. What is the effect of Pennsylvania's workers' compensation exclusive remedy provision?
The employer's liability replaces all other liability to the employeeThe employee must elect between benefits and a tort suit at filingThe employee may sue the employer in tort and also collect benefitsThe employer may be sued in tort only for injuries causing death
10. Which label best describes Pennsylvania's rate regulatory system for personal lines?
No file, because personal lines rates are fully deregulatedPure file and use, with no waiting period of any kindUse and file, with filings due 30 days after first usePrior approval, operated through a statutory waiting period
11. What figure does Pennsylvania use as the maximum weekly workers' compensation benefit?
The federal poverty guideline, adjusted for family sizeThe statewide average weekly wage, set annuallyA fixed dollar amount written into the 1915 actTwo-thirds of the statewide average weekly wage
12. A Pennsylvania private passenger auto policy has been in force two years. On which ground may the insurer cancel it midterm?
The insured has filed three comprehensive glass claimsThe named insured's driver's license has been suspendedThe insured elected the full tort option at last renewalThe insurer has decided to exit the personal auto market
13. A husband claims loss of consortium because of his wife's injury. Which limit caps his claim?
A separate per person limit of his own, because he is a separate claimantThe per accident limit, because consortium is not a bodily injury claimThe per person limit applying to his wife's bodily injury, not a second oneThe property damage limit, because the loss is economic rather than bodily
14. Which of the following is an example of a PURE risk (as opposed to speculative)?
The chance of gain or loss on a stock purchaseThe chance a new business earns a profitThe chance of winning or losing a bet on a gameThe chance that a home will be damaged by fire
15. WC premium is rated on:
Per-thousand of gross receipts, modified by the number of employees in the business.The employer's total revenue, modified by the age and tenure of the employees.Per-hundred of payroll by job class, modified by experience modification (MOD).A flat rate per employee, regardless of job class, adjusted for the employer's industry.
16. A Businessowners Policy (BOP) is a packaged product designed for:
Contractors, bars, and auto repair garages whose exposures are too hazardous for a standard commercial package policy.Large manufacturers and national retail chains with complex, multistate exposures requiring individually rated coverage.Small-to-medium-sized businesses in eligible classes such as office, retail, apartment, and small-scale service operations.Individuals and families seeking combined homeowners and personal auto coverage in a single package policy.
17. May a Pennsylvania insurer advertise that its policyholders are protected by the guaranty association?
Yes, but only in materials filed with the Insurance DepartmentYes, provided the statement accurately describes the limitsNo, using the Association's protection in a sale is prohibitedNo, unless the insurer is currently subject to supervision
18. A crime policy's definition of 'money' typically includes:
Currency, coins, bank notes, and bullion, including traveler's checks and money orders.Currency and coins only, while traveler's checks and money orders are always treated as securities.Stocks, bonds, and other negotiable instruments held by the insured, but not currency or coins.Any property of value, including inventory, equipment, and accounts receivable records.
19. A rating plan produces sharply different premiums for two risks in the same class with the same hazard. What is the exposure?
An automatic revocation of the certificate of authorityNone, because insurers may price at their own discretionUnfair discrimination in the premium charged for a policyA criminal violation of the insurance fraud statute
20. Which of the following BEST describes a MORAL hazard?
A tangible physical condition that increases the chance of loss, such as faulty wiring in a building.An insured's carelessness or indifference toward loss because insurance will pay, such as leaving doors unlocked.A legal environment in which courts tend to expand liability and award larger damages to plaintiffs.The insured's deliberate act or dishonesty that increases loss, such as arson for profit.

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