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Intellectual Property Insurance in Florida

Florida requires consent for commercial or advertising use of a person’s name or likeness, and the statutory claim can continue for 40 years after death; unauthorized use of an armed-forces member’s likeness can also carry a penalty of up to $1,000 per transaction. If your business uses endorsements, archival images, or confidential know-how, ask how the policy treats those claims separately from copyright and contractual disputes. 1,2

What Is Intellectual Property?

Intellectual property insurance comes in two separate parts: defense, when you're accused of infringing a patent, trademark or copyright, and enforcement, when you pursue someone who copied yours. A defense-only quote doesn't pay for your own lawsuit, so ask for each part you need. Read the national Intellectual property guide.

What to Watch for in Florida

  • Confirm Consent for Commercial Uses

    Florida § 540.08 reaches public use of a natural person’s name, portrait, photograph, or likeness for trade, advertising, or commercial purposes without the specified consent. It includes exceptions for legitimate news uses, resale of products with consent to the initial distribution, and unidentified people appearing only as members of the public; keep authorization records and ask how publicity allegations are treated. 1

  • Check Long-Lived and Military Campaign Rights

    A claim may be brought for up to 40 years after the person’s death, and an unauthorized use of an armed-forces member’s identity can carry a civil penalty up to $1,000 per commercial transaction when no statutory exception applies. For archived or military-themed campaigns, ask the broker to identify applicable limits and exclusions without assuming the penalty is insurable. 1

  • Show Reasonable Secrecy Measures

    Florida defines a trade secret as information with independent economic value from not being generally known or readily ascertainable and subject to reasonable efforts to maintain secrecy. If your business relies on private technical or commercial information, ask how the policy defines trade-secret claims and document the controls you use; the statute does not establish policy coverage. 2

Who Regulates Insurance in Florida

Florida Office of Insurance Regulation

The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation licenses and regulates insurance companies and reviews rates and forms. The Department of Financial Services separately licenses insurance agents and handles consumer insurance complaints; its resource page links to both state license searches. 3,4,5

Surplus-lines tax and stamping office

Reported tax rate: 4.94% of gross premium plus a 0.03% FSLSO service fee for policies effective July 1, 2026 or later When Florida is the insured’s home state, Florida taxes the entire gross premium at 4.94%; the premium definition includes policy and similar insurance charges. The separate FSLSO service fee is 0.03% for policies effective July 1, 2026 or later. Surplus-lines policies do not receive Florida Insurance Guaranty Association protection. 6,7,8

Florida Surplus Lines Service Office

Providers With Documented State Licenses

No provider in Spot’s research documents both a state license record and this coverage line. This does not establish that providers are unlicensed. Check the regulator’s license lookup and confirm availability with a provider when requesting a quote.

Questions to Ask Before You Buy in Florida

  1. Does this policy defend Florida statutory publicity claims involving paid ads, endorsements, and postmortem likenesses?
  2. How should we handle a demand involving a service member’s likeness or a deceased person’s estate, and are statutory penalties excluded?
  3. Does the trade-secret wording address allegations involving our specific confidential code, methods, or customer information?

Intellectual Property in Florida: FAQ

Does Florida require consent to use a person’s likeness in an advertisement? 1

Generally, yes: § 540.08 requires consent for commercial or advertising use of a natural person’s name or likeness, subject to listed exceptions. A separate statutory claim can extend up to 40 years after death, and policy response depends on the wording. 1

What does Florida require for information to count as a trade secret? 2

The information must have independent economic value because it is not generally known or readily ascertainable, and it must be subject to reasonable efforts to keep it secret. Ask your broker whether the policy’s trade-secret definition matches the information your business seeks to protect. 2

Intellectual Property in Other States

Other Coverage in Florida

Sources

  1. 2026 Florida Statutes § 540.08, Unauthorized publication of name or likeness. Florida Legislature; § 540.08(1)–(7): consent, remedies, armed-forces penalty, exceptions, 40-year postmortem limit, cumulative remedies. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  2. 2026 Florida Statutes § 688.002, Definitions. Florida Senate; § 688.002(4): trade-secret definition; the state code requires independent value from secrecy plus reasonable efforts to maintain secrecy. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  3. Florida Office of Insurance Regulation. Florida Office of Insurance Regulation; Official regulator homepage; insurer regulation. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  4. Resources. Florida Office of the Insurance Consumer Advocate; State page links to DFS agent search and OIR active company search. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  5. Get Insurance Help. Florida Department of Financial Services; Insurance concern and formal complaint intake; consumer helpline. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  6. Florida Statutes § 626.932: Surplus lines tax. Florida Legislature; 4.94% tax on gross premium; home-state taxation; statutory definition of premium. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  7. FSLSO Bulletin 2026-02. Florida Surplus Lines Service Office; Service-fee rate effective July 1, 2026: 0.03%. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  8. Licenses. At-Bay; Current producer introduction and state table; At-Bay Insurance Services LLC; P&C and surplus-lines identifiers. Accessed 2026-09-21.
  9. Licenses and Carriers. Coalition; Licenses and Carriers, re-read 22 September 2026: Insurance Licenses table for Coalition Insurance Solutions, Inc., national producer number 18419475, with producer and surplus-lines numbers for all 50 states and DC including California 0L76155, Georgia 196479, Texas 2199630 and 2205589, Pennsylvania 815731 and 817452, Colorado 539028 and Wisconsin 3000108852. Insurance Carriers table naming, with NAIC numbers, Allianz Underwriters Insurance Company 36420, Arch Specialty Insurance Company 21199, Ascot Specialty Insurance Company 45055, Ascot Insurance Company 23752, Aspen Specialty Insurance Company 10717, Chaucer Insurance Company DAC, Coalition Insurance Company 29530, Fireman's Fund Indemnity Corporation 11380, Fortegra Specialty Insurance Company 16823, Lloyd's of London, MSIG Specialty Insurance USA Inc. 34886, MS Transverse Specialty Insurance Company 41807, Steadfast Insurance Company 26387, Vantage Risk Specialty Insurance Company 16275 and Zurich American Insurance Company 16535. Accessed 2026-09-22.
  10. Insurance Producer Licenses. Corgi Insurance; Current complete Insurance Producer Licenses table for Corgi Insurance Services, Inc.; 50 rows covering 49 states and DC (DC 3003091619); no New Mexico row; no NPN or as-of date shown. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  11. About Hiscox US Insurance. Hiscox; Hiscox Insurance Company Inc. NAIC 10200 as Chicago, IL domiciled insurer admitted or licensed in all 50 states and D.C.; Hiscox Inc. as general agent and Lloyd’s coverholder for Syndicates 33 and 3624; surplus-lines placements through licensed surplus-lines brokers; A.M. Best rating statement. Accessed 2026-09-16.
  12. Licenses. ERGO NEXT Insurance; Current entity-by-state license table reopened 28 September 2026: 50 rows under Next First Insurance Agency, Inc., including Washington, DC; New York rows instead list Next Insurance Services PC-1423070 and AP Intego BR-1198885. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  13. Insurance Licenses by State. TechInsurance; Current state table; identifies TechInsurance as a division of Specialty Program Group LLC d/b/a SPG Insurance Solutions; lists DC 3000041536 and labels Rhode Island “Individual licenses,” without an agency license number. Accessed 2026-09-28.
  14. Licenses. Vouch; Effective 16 January 2025: Vouch Specialty Insurance Services, LLC, NPN 19926463; P&C table (50 states and DC); surplus-lines table includes Idaho 870820; footnote says Georgia and Idaho do not issue agency-level surplus-lines licenses; Idaho retained as producer-only due to conflict. Accessed 2026-09-15.

Updated .

This guide is informational and does not determine whether a policy is available or meets your needs. Editorial policy. To suggest a correction, contact Spot with a supporting source.

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