A written agreement between three parties: the Principal (person or entity needing the bond), the
Obligee (the entity requesting or requiring the bond), and the Surety (the company that provides the
financial guarantee to the Obligee if the Principal cannot fulfill their obligation)

The short answer is NO. The purpose of the surety bond is to protect the Obligee, in the event that you
(as the Principal) break the terms of the bond. It is the Obligee’s “insurance” that you will perform
your duty as set out in the bond.

The cost is dependent on the bond amount, bond type, bond term and the bond form itself. Some bonds do
not have a cancellation clause or have a small demand window and, therefore, are more strictly
underwritten. Typically, contract bonds are written at a 1-4% rate depending on the bond size, financial
strength and experience of the applicant. Each commercial bond premium varies based on the information
set above.

A bond is not an insurance policy. When you have auto insurance and you file an auto claim, it is paid and your rates will possibly go up next month (maybe not). With a bond, the Surety company will make things right with the Obligee but they will come back to you for repayment of the claim up to the bond amount. Therefore, the Surety wants to know that you have the ability to pay back a claim if one arises. Their only way to determine that is by personal credit. For larger bond amounts, they also use personal financial statements and business financials as well.

Absolutely. The process is the same regardless of your credit. However, not all markets will write a bond for someone with less than clean credit. We use markets that will write bonds for those with moderate and substandard credit and work to get you the best rate possible.

Surety bond premiums are almost always paid before a bond is issued. However, we do have markets that will allow for premium finance (making payments) on certain bonds. Once your bond is quoted, if you want to have that option, you can let your representative know and they will check to see if your bond meets the requirements. The bond has to be one that is cancellable with a reasonable cancellation notice acceptable to the Surety.