Surety Bond Professionals is a family-owned and operated bonding agency 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 Florida title bond needs.
What Are They?
Imagine that you want to register, sell, or donate a motor vehicle that you own but have no valid title for. Florida, like every other state, doesn’t permit you to do any of those things without a legitimate title. So what do you do?
As long as the vehicle was last registered in the state of Florida and is not considered abandoned, the answer is to apply for a bonded title, which requires the purchase of a Florida title bond (sometimes referred to as a lost title bond). The bonded title will allow you to register the vehicle or transfer ownership to someone else, but it will be encumbered for three years.
The title bond provides financial protection for the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (DHSMV) and any legitimate owner or lienholder, as well as any party to whom you transfer ownership of the vehicle via a bonded title.
Who Needs Them?
These are the most common scenarios that can create the need for a Florida title bond:
- The seller did not give you a title when you purchased the vehicle.
- The seller gave you a valid title, but it was lost or stolen before you could register the vehicle.
- The seller provided a title that was defaced, altered, or fraudulent and is therefore invalid.
You don’t need to obtain a bonded title if the vehicle was already registered in your name but the title was subsequently lost or stolen. You would simply request a replacement title from DHSMV.
Speak with a Surety Bond Professionals agent today to discuss your bonding needs.
How Do They Work?
Obtaining a bonded title requires the purchase of a Florida title bond. You’ll also need to verify the vehicle’s VIN and odometer reading, and attest to your ownership. After submitting all completed forms, including the title bond and HSMV form 82042, “Florida Application for Certificate of Title With/Without Registration,” to your local tax collector’s office and paying required fees, you will receive your bonded title in the mail.
As long as nobody challenges your ownership of the vehicle within three years from the issuance of the Florida title bond, you can apply for a regular, unencumbered title at the end of that period. However, someone with a legitimate ownership interest in or lien against the vehicle could turn up and be able to prove that you are not the rightful owner.
If you have sold or transferred the vehicle in the meantime, that party can file a claim against the bond and be compensated for the financial loss. The same is true if the vehicle has been damaged, or if the true owner otherwise incurred a financial loss because you took possession of the vehicle illegitimately.
You are legally obligated to pay any valid claim filed during the three years that the bond is in effect. In practice, however, the surety bond company will pay the claim for you, essentially extending you short-term credit and giving you some time to come up with the needed funds. The terms of the legally binding surety bond agreement require you to reimburse the company in full.
What Do They Cost?
The annual premium for a Florida title bond is a small percentage of the required bond amount, which is twice the vehicle’s appraised value. The surety company will determine that percentage—the premium rate—based largely on your personal credit score. If your credit is good, you could pay a premium rate as low as 1%. With poor credit, your premium rate will be significantly higher due to the greater risk the surety bond company is taking in extending you credit.
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Our surety bond professionals will get you the Florida title bond you need at a competitive rate.