Study guide
1.1 Current Exam Facts
Associate in Insurance AINS
Track your progress as you read
Finished sections get a check mark.
1 Introduction & Exam Overview
1.1 Current Exam Facts 1.2 Designation Path: Core, Concentration, Elective, Ethics 1.3 How to Study for AINS and Use This Guide
2 AINS 101 Assignment 1: Why Do We Have Insurance?
2.1 Risk, Peril, Hazard, and Loss Exposures 2.2 The Risk Management Process 2.3 Insurable Risk, Pooling, and the Law of Large Numbers
3 AINS 101 Assignment 2: How Do Insurers Succeed?
3.1 Types of Insurers 3.2 Premiums, Loss Ratio, Expense Ratio, and Combined Ratio 3.3 Reinsurance, Capital, and Solvency
4 AINS 101 Assignment 3: How Does Underwriting Work?
4.1 Purpose and Steps of Underwriting 4.2 Adverse Selection, Hazards, and Underwriting Authority 4.3 Ratemaking and Premium Components
5 AINS 101 Assignment 4: How Do Insurers Handle Claims?
5.1 From First Notice of Loss to Settlement 5.2 First-Party vs Third-Party and Coverage Determination 5.3 Good Faith, Subrogation, and Salvage
6 AINS 101 Assignment 5: How Do Insurers Reach Customers?
6.1 Independent Agents, Exclusive Agents, and Brokers 6.2 Direct Writers, MGAs, and Digital Distribution 6.3 Producer Compensation and Customer-Facing Roles
7 AINS 101 Assignment 6: What Goes Into an Insurance Policy?
7.1 Declarations, Insuring Agreement, Conditions, Exclusions 7.2 Definitions, Endorsements, and Who Is an Insured 7.3 Legal Principles of Insurance Contracts
8 AINS 101: How Insurers Operate in a Regulated Market
8.1 State Regulation and the McCarran-Ferguson Act 8.2 NAIC, Rate Regulation, and Solvency Oversight 8.3 Producer Licensing, Unfair Practices, and Residual Markets
9 AINS 102 Assignment 1: Why Do People Need Insurance?
9.1 Personal Loss Exposures 9.2 Personal Risk Management and Why People Buy 9.3 Personal Lines Landscape: Auto, Home, Liability, Life, Health
10 AINS 102 Assignment 2: What’s in a Personal Auto Policy?
10.1 PAP Eligible Vehicles, Insureds, and Policy Structure 10.2 Part A Liability and Part B Medical Payments 10.3 Part C UM/UIM and Part D Damage to Your Auto 10.4 PAP Exclusions, Conditions, and Common Endorsements
11 AINS 102 Assignment 3: What’s in a Homeowners’ Policy?
11.1 HO-2, HO-3, HO-4, HO-5, HO-6, and HO-8 Compared 11.2 Section I Property Coverages A–D 11.3 Perils, Exclusions, and Loss Settlement 11.4 Section II Liability (E and F) and HO Conditions
12 AINS 102 Assignment 4: What Other Policies Do People Need?
12.1 Personal Umbrella and Excess Liability 12.2 Scheduled Personal Property, Flood (NFIP), and Earthquake 12.3 Life, Health, and Disability Insurance Basics
13 AINS 102 Assignments 5–6: Evolution and Key Roles
13.1 Telematics, Usage-Based Insurance, and Personal Lines Innovation 13.2 Personal Lines Underwriting and Claims Roles 13.3 Agency, Customer Service, and Cross-Role Collaboration
14 AINS 103 Assignment 1: Why Do Businesses Need Insurance?
14.1 Commercial Property, Liability, Net Income, and Personnel Exposures 14.2 Commercial Risk Management Techniques 14.3 Monoline vs Package and the Commercial Lines Landscape
15 AINS 103 Assignment 2: What’s in a Commercial Property Policy?
15.1 Commercial Package Policy and the BPP Coverage Form 15.2 Basic, Broad, and Special Causes of Loss 15.3 Business Income and Extra Expense
16 AINS 103 Assignment 3: What’s in a Commercial Liability Policy?
16.1 CGL Coverage A — Bodily Injury and Property Damage 16.2 Coverage B Personal/Advertising Injury and Coverage C Medical Payments 16.3 Occurrence vs Claims-Made, Limits, and CGL Exclusions
17 AINS 103 Assignment 4: What Other Policies Do Businesses Need?
17.1 Business Auto Coverage Form 17.2 Workers Compensation and Employers Liability 17.3 Commercial Umbrella, Professional Liability, and Management Liability 17.4 Inland/Ocean Marine, Crime, Surety, Cyber, and Environmental
18 AINS 103 Assignments 5–6: Small Business Coverage and Evolving Roles
18.1 Businessowners Policy (BOP) 18.2 Tailoring Coverage for Small Businesses 18.3 Evolving Commercial Underwriting, Claims, and Producer Roles
19 Ethics 311: Ethical Decision Making in Risk and Insurance
19.1 Ethical Behavior and Professionalism 19.2 Conflicts of Interest and Resolving Ethical Dilemmas 19.3 Institutes Integrity Rules and Ethical Guidelines for Insurance Professionals
20 Electives, Career Path, and Virtual Exam Strategy
20.1 Choosing an AINS Elective 20.2 Related Designations: CPCU, ARM, AIC, API, AU, AIS, AIO, SPPA 20.3 Virtual Exam Strategy, Windows, and Retakes
1.1 Current Exam Facts
Key Takeaways Explain This Topic AI
Each 2026 AINS course exam is 50 application-based questions in 65 minutes, delivered virtually, with one attempt per registration and a timer that cannot be paused.
The passing score is 70 percent; pass or non-pass appears immediately, and the student record updates within 48 hours.
The Institutes does not publish an AINS-only pass rate; the published average pass ratio for an Institutes Designations exam is 72.5 percent.
2026 AINS virtual exam fees are $249 early-discount, $329 standard, and $249 for a same-window retake; early pricing applies only if purchased before the window's first day.
2026 testing windows are January 15–March 15, April 15–June 15, July 15–September 15, and October 15–December 15, closing at 11:59 p.m. ET on the final day.
Last updated: August 2026
What the AINS Designation Is in 2026
The Associate in Insurance (AINS®) is the foundational designation of The Institutes Knowledge Group . Older handbooks, job posts, and exam-prep blogs still say Associate in General Insurance . That historical name describes the same credential. The abbreviation AINS did not change, and employers, transcripts, and The Institutes still use it.
AINS is a knowledge designation, not a state insurance license. Passing it does not replace a producer, independent adjuster, public adjuster, or surplus-lines license. It shows that you can explain how underwriters assess and price risk, how claims staff set expectations, how to navigate a policy, and how personal or commercial coverage works on the job. There are no education or experience prerequisites . Career changers and people new to risk and insurance are the intended audience.
You do not sit one giant "AINS exam." Each course has its own virtual credentialing exam. You register for a window, complete the sitting, and earn course credit. The diploma is issued when the full designation path is complete.
Current Format: 50 Questions, 65 Minutes
Stale third-party pages still advertise an 85-question, two-hour paper or testing-center exam. That is not the 2026 AINS format. The Institutes exam-information page is the source of truth:
- Item 2026 official rule
- Questions 50 application-based items
- Time 65 minutes
- Delivery Virtual, timed, from any location with reliable internet
- Attempts One attempt per registration
- Timer Starts when you click Start Attempt ; it cannot be paused
- Passing score 70%
- Result Pass or non-pass immediately
- Record update Student record updates within 48 hours
Sixty-five minutes for 50 items is about 78 seconds per question . These are not definition-only items. Virtual exams use application-based questions : you apply course knowledge to a workplace scenario — an underwriter selecting a risk, a claim representative explaining a deductible, a customer-service representative reading a declarations page. If you only memorize vocabulary, the clock will feel short.
Before the timer starts you complete the Exam Administration Affidavit and agree to The Institutes Code of Academic and Professional Integrity and Rules of Conduct . Treat a kitchen-table sitting as a professional exam. The attempt is still one registration, and a dropped connection does not pause the clock.
Scoring: What Is Published, and What Is Not
70% is the published passing score for an Institutes Designations exam, including every AINS course exam. You see pass or non-pass as soon as you submit. The student record updates within 48 hours .
The Institutes does not publish an AINS-only pass rate. Do not invent 68%, 80%, or any other AINS-specific figure from a forum or an outdated PDF. What The Institutes does publish is that the average pass ratio for an Institutes Designations exam is 72.5% . Outcomes vary by student and by course. Use 72.5% as a difficulty signal for Institutes exams as a group, not as a promise that your AINS 101 sitting will land there.
2026 Testing Windows
You buy an exam into a window, then sit any time until 11:59 p.m. ET on the final day. If the last day falls on a weekend, The Institutes extends the close to the next business day . Miss the deadline and the exam is removed; you register and pay again.
- Window 2026 dates
- Quarter 1 January 15 – March 15
- Quarter 2 April 15 – June 15
- Quarter 3 July 15 – September 15
- Quarter 4 October 15 – December 15
Early-discount pricing applies only if you purchase before the first day of the registered window . A candidate who buys on January 14 for Q1 pays the early rate; a candidate who buys on January 15 pays standard. The Institutes' own registration copy is blunt: purchase before the window opens to save up to $80 per exam.
You may purchase up to four unique exams per testing window. Retakes are not counted toward that four-exam cap.
Technology and Calculator Rules
Virtual delivery is laptop or desktop only . Mobile phones and tablets are not supported. You need a webcam and microphone , Windows 10 or 11 or the latest two macOS releases , and the latest Chrome, Edge, or Firefox . Test camera and microphone at least 48 hours before you sit. A reliable internet connection is your responsibility.
Calculator rule: a basic calculator or a business/financial calculator is allowed if it is not programmable, has no alphabetic keys, and cannot store words. Phone calculators and computer calculators are prohibited. Bring a dedicated handheld unit with no alpha keypad.
2026 Fees, Retakes, Transfers, and Cancelations
The amounts below come from The Institutes 2026 Registration Form fee chart, AINS / AIO / AIS row. Early fees apply only if purchased before the first day of the registered window.
- Fee type 2026 amount
- Early-discount virtual exam $249
- Standard virtual exam $329
- Virtual retake (same window) $249
- Transfer to another window $95 (non-refundable)
- Cancelation forfeiture $145
A retake is allowed once in the same testing window . Virtual retakes are $80 off the $329 standard price, which is why the retake lists at $249. If you are not ready, transfer through My Courses and Exams or Customer Success by 6 p.m. on the last business day of the window. The $95 transfer fee is non-refundable. Cancelation forfeiture is $145 .
The Institutes also publishes separate 50% off standard exam fee reductions for qualifying full-time U.S. college students and teachers, full-time insurance regulators, and U.S. active-duty military and reservists, with documented proof. Those reductions are not the AINS/AIO/AIS row on the fee chart; confirm eligibility with Customer Success before you assume the $249 / $329 prices.
Course Materials and the Simulated Exam
The 2026 AINS 101, AINS 102, and AINS 103 Online Learning Package is $359 each (The Institutes 2026 Order Form / price list). The package includes the online course, a printable study outline, assignment quizzes, interactive practice exams, a simulated credentialing exam , and the mobile app.
The Institutes reports that students who take the AINS simulated exam score 6–9 points higher (2020–2021 student results). On a 70% pass line, a 6–9 point lift is often the difference between a first-attempt pass and a same-window retake at $249.
ExamFinch's free practice bank at /practice/ains is supplementary scenario drill. It is not The Institutes credentialing exam and does not replace official enrollment.
Official Sources
When a blog, older PDF, or recruiter handout conflicts with The Institutes, trust the owner page with the later effective date:
- Associate in Insurance (AINS)
- Exam Information
- Workplace Trap: Logistics Protect the 70% Score
Jordan is a personal-lines customer service representative who bought a standard virtual AINS 101 exam after Q2 opened and paid $329 . On test day Jordan tries to sit on a tablet, then learns tablets are unsupported. After switching to a laptop, Jordan clicks Start Attempt, hits a Wi-Fi drop eight minutes later, and cannot pause the timer. That sitting is the one attempt on that registration. The recovery is a same-window virtual retake at $249 , a desktop hardware check 48 hours ahead, and a dedicated non-programmable calculator on the desk. Exam logistics are not trivia. They are how you keep a 70% sitting from becoming a forfeit.