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BartalInsurance

Surety Bonds

Get bonded.
Go bid the job.

Bid, performance, payment, license, and permit bonds for Pennsylvania contractors and businesses. Send us the bond form and we'll tell you what the surety needs.

Request a Bond570-344-0211

Bidding against a deadline? Call the office. The form is slower.

First Things First

A bond is not a policy.

People use the two words interchangeably and then get surprised at claim time. Your general liability policy exists to protect you. A surety bond exists to protect the person who required it.

Insurance
Two parties. You pay a premium, the carrier absorbs covered losses, and losses are expected and priced in.
Surety Bond
Three parties: you, the party requiring the bond, and the surety. The surety expects zero losses. If it pays a claim, you reimburse it. It is underwritten more like credit than like coverage.
$5,000
PA public works threshold
Contracts above this require bonds. The lowest threshold in the country.
100%
Performance bond amount
Pennsylvania requires the performance bond at the full contract value.
100%
Payment bond amount
A matching payment bond protects your subs and suppliers.

Source: Pennsylvania's Public Works Contractors' Bond Act. Private owners and general contractors can require bonds on any job by putting it in the contract, at any dollar amount.

What We Write

Bonds we place.

If the form you were handed isn't on this list, send it anyway. Most of the odd ones are still writable.

  • Bid Bonds

    Filed with your bid on a public or private project. It guarantees that if you win, you'll sign the contract at the price you quoted and produce the performance bond behind it.

  • Performance Bonds

    The owner's guarantee that the job gets finished to the terms of the contract. On Pennsylvania public work these run 100% of the contract value.

  • Payment Bonds

    Guarantees your subs and suppliers get paid, which keeps liens off the owner's property. Required alongside the performance bond on PA public contracts.

  • Maintenance Bonds

    Covers defects in workmanship or materials for a set window after the job closes out, usually one to two years depending on the spec.

  • Supply Bonds

    For suppliers under contract to deliver materials or equipment. It guarantees the goods show up on schedule and to specification.

  • License & Permit Bonds

    Required by a city, county, or state agency before they'll issue your license or pull your permit. Amounts are set by the agency, not by us.

  • Scranton Condemnation Release Bonds

    A $10,000 bond filed with the City of Scranton's Department of Licensing, Inspections and Permits. It lets an owner rehab a condemned property on an agreed timeline instead of losing it to demolition.

  • Court & Miscellaneous Bonds

    Probate and fiduciary bonds, appeal bonds, notary bonds, and the assorted one-off bonds an agency or a judge asks for. If you were handed a bond form, send it over.

Before You Apply

What the surety will ask for.

Small license and permit bonds usually need the form and a credit check, and they often issue the same day. Contract bonds are underwritten like a credit line, so the first one takes real paperwork. After that, jobs move fast.

Underwriters weigh three things: capital, capacity, and character. Weak credit doesn't automatically end the conversation. It usually just changes the rate or the single-job limit.

Have This Handy

  • The bond form or bid spec the obligee handed you
  • Two to three years of business financial statements
  • A current work-in-progress schedule, if you have open jobs
  • Personal financial statement for each owner
  • Your bank reference and, on larger programs, your CPA
Start a Bond Request

Bond Questions

Straight answers.

Is a surety bond the same as insurance?
No, and the difference matters. An insurance policy protects you. A surety bond protects the party requiring it, usually a project owner or a licensing agency. It is a three-party agreement between you, that party, and the surety company. If a valid claim is paid, you are expected to reimburse the surety. Think of it closer to a line of credit that vouches for your ability to perform than to a policy that absorbs your losses.
When does Pennsylvania require a performance bond?
Under Pennsylvania's Public Works Contractors' Bond Act, public contracts above $5,000 require both a performance bond and a payment bond, each at 100% of the contract amount. That is the lowest threshold of any state, so PA contractors run into bonding earlier than contractors almost anywhere else. Private owners and general contractors can also require bonds on any job by writing it into the contract.
How much does a surety bond cost?
You pay a premium, not the face amount of the bond. Small license and permit bonds are often a flat charge of roughly $100 to $250 a year. Contract bonds are priced as a percentage of the contract, commonly around 1% to 3% for an established contractor with solid financials, and higher if credit or working capital is thin. Your rate depends on the surety’s underwriting, not on a rate chart we control.
How fast can you get me bonded?
Small license, permit, and notary bonds are frequently issued the same business day. A first-time contract bond takes longer because the surety has to establish a bond program for you, which means reviewing financials. Once that program is open, individual bonds on qualifying jobs move quickly. If you're up against a bid deadline, call the office directly rather than using the form.
What do I need to apply for a contract bond?
Send the bond form or bid spec, two to three years of business financial statements, a work-in-progress schedule if you have open jobs, and a personal financial statement for each owner. Larger bond programs also want a bank reference and CPA-prepared statements. For a small license or permit bond, the application is usually just the form and a credit check.
Can I get bonded with weak credit?
Often, yes. Sureties weigh capital, capacity, and character together, so a strong balance sheet and a clean job history can carry a mediocre credit score. Expect a higher rate, a lower single-job limit, or a request for collateral. Bring the real numbers to the first conversation rather than after a decline. It saves a round trip.
What is a Scranton condemnation release bond?
It is a $10,000 surety bond filed with the City of Scranton's Department of Licensing, Inspections and Permits by the owner of a condemned property. It holds the owner financially responsible for bringing the building up to code within an agreed timeframe, which is what allows the property to be rehabbed instead of demolished. If the work isn't done, the city can claim against the bond.

Send us the bond form.

Whatever the obligee handed you, we'll read it and tell you what the surety will need. If you're up against a bid deadline, call rather than fill in a form.

Request a bondCall 570-344-0211