Surety Bond Professionals is a family-owned and operated bonding company with over 30 years of experience. With access to a broad range of surety markets, our expert agents are ready to assist with all of your Colorado title bond needs.
What Are They?
A title bond is a surety bond that is required before a vehicle with no valid title can be registered in your name or transferred to anyone else. A title bond is the prerequisite for getting a bonded title, which is why title bonds are sometimes called bonded title bonds. With a bonded title, you can register or sell the vehicle, but the title remains encumbered for three years.
A title bond provides financial protection for anyone who comes forward with valid proof of ownership of the vehicle during the three years that the title bond is in effect. It also protects anyone you might sell or transfer the vehicle to within that period.
Who Needs Them?
Anyone who needs a title for a vehicle that is lacking one must first buy a Colorado title bond, technically called a Colorado Certificate of Title bond. This is a prerequisite for getting a bonded title that will allow the vehicle owner to register, sell, gift, donate, or junk the vehicle.
The most common reasons for needing a Colorado title bond include the following:
- The seller did not give the buyer a title at the time of purchase.
- The title the seller gave the buyer is defaced, altered, forged, or invalid for other reasons.
- The seller gave the buyer a title but it was lost or stolen before the buyer could register the vehicle in his or her name.
Without a valid title, there’s not much you can do with the vehicle, even if it was abandoned on your property.
Speak with a Surety Bond Professionals agent today to discuss your bonding needs.
How Do They Work?
The Colorado DMV issues bonded titles and salvage titles. In addition to having the vehicle undergo a VIN inspection by a certified P.O.S.T. inspector, before you can apply for a title bond, you’ll need to take the following steps:
- Complete a Motor Vehicle Requestor Release Affidavit of Intended Use
- Request a Colorado Title Record Search form and attempt to contact the prior titleholder or holder of any active liens on the vehicle
- Get the vehicle appraised
Once you purchase the title bond, you’ll submit it along with a completed Bond Statement Guide & In Lieu of Bond Affidavit form and other required documents to your local DMV for approval.
During the three years of the bond’s duration, you will be legally obligated to pay any claim submitted by a person who can prove an ownership interest in or a lien against the vehicle and a financial loss incurred as a result of the bonded individual’s actions. For example, the rightful owner could file a claim for damages if you sold the vehicle or it was totaled in an accident.
The surety bond company typically pays valid claims in advance and then collects reimbursement from the bonded individual. You, not the company that issues your title bond, bear sole legal responsibility for paying claims. By making an advance payment to a claimant, the surety company is simply expediting payment while giving you some time to pull together the necessary funds to cover the claim.
If at the end of the three-year period no claims have been filed against the title bond, the bonded title will be exchanged for a standard title.
What Do They Cost?
The required bond amount and what you will pay for a Colorado title bond depend on the appraised value of the vehicle. The required bond amount must be twice as much as the appraised value.
For vehicles with an appraised value of $6,000 or less, the cost of a title bond is $100. For vehicles with an appraised value above $6,000 but no more than $25,000, the cost is $100 plus an additional $10 per $100,000 of coverage. If the vehicle is appraised at more than $25,000, your bond application will be subject to underwriting, and your personal credit score will be a key consideration in determining the bond’s premium cost.
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Our surety bond professionals will get you the Colorado title bond you need at a competitive rate.