Understanding The Surety Bonds And When It Is Needed

By Krystal Branch


When an entity issues a bond on behalf of the other entity, surety bonds arises. In this case, there are three parties; party A which owe party B an obligation but a third party (party C) comes in to give guarantee on behalf of party A. In the event that party A does not meet the obligation, party B recovers its due from party C which in turn uses the surety bonds to recover its losses. Legally, it can be described as a contractual agreement signed between the owners of the project that it will be completed. The business can also use it to guarantee that business regulations are to be followed.

Normally, it takes form of insurance cover where the surety is the insurer. The principal purchase the cover from the guarantor/insurer and pays a given rate of premium which depends on a number of factors such as credit worthiness and business history. If there is a valid claim, the insurance company has to pay the reparation not exceeding the bond amount.

Party B on the other hands is that party that requires assurance against financial loss. They are referred to as obligee. The third party (C) is known as surety and in most cases; it is insurance company backing the bond. They provide credit to fulfill the project if the principal fails to do so. This means that the obligee can go ahead to recover any losses from the surety arising from the failure of the principal to fulfill their task.

As long as the claim is valid, the insurance company has to pay the reparation. This however cannot be paid in excess of amount guaranteed. The insurance underwriter can then proceed and recover the loss from the principle. So, under what circumstances will this bond become necessary?

The design for most of these bonds is to protect the public from the money loss, fraud, business failure or any unethical business activity that can lead to losses of any kind to the public. Generally, they are required by government agencies both at state and federal levels before issuing the certificates or permits particularly to professionals and related firms as condition for issuing such licenses. An example is the mortgage brokerage firms as they have to give a surety to the regulatory authority so that the public can be compensated when things go wrong.

This type of bond gives insurance agencies the opportunity to be able to expand their business in this highly competitive market. As an insurance agent, it is dangerous to specialize in personal auto or homeowners insurance only. It will be advantageous to start writing commercial type of insurances which can be best done by starting from surety bonds.

The bonding process can either be done by brokerage firms that work with several insurance firms to give you the best premiums available or go for the service from a particular insurance firm identified in advance. The cost varies from one insurance firm to the other, the brokerage firm to the other and several other determining factors.

The premium charged will vary from one firm to the other. However, most firms use the nature of business and credit history as a way of determining the appropriate premiums. When underwriting surety bonds, it is important that each of the parties reveal all the information that is relevant to avoid any future problems in case a claim arises. As the principal, you must also keep in mind that there are many options and hence many chances to bargain for better premiums.




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