Vermont Surety Bonds— The State That Bonds the Least

Far fewer than most states. The two Vermont-issued bonds that come up most are the motor vehicle dealer bond ($20,000-$35,000 on a sliding scale under 23 V.S.A. 453(g), filed with the DMV) and probate fiduciary bonds (14 V.S.A. 906, set by the Probate Division for executors and administrators). Beyond those, Vermont does not require a notary bond, has no statewide contractor license bond, and its vehicle title bond is limited to Vermont residents. The federal freight broker bond ($75,000 BMC-84) applies to Vermont brokers because it is an FMCSA requirement, not a state one.

It ranges from $20,000 to $35,000 depending on your prior calendar year retail sales volume, under 23 V.S.A. 453(g) and the DMV rule schedule. A brand-new dealer with no sales history starts at the top of the scale ($35,000) and can move down as documented volume is established. Vermont is one of the few states that ties the dealer bond penalty to sales history rather than setting a single flat number for every dealer.

Not automatically the way it does in most states. Vermont never adopted the Uniform Probate Code, so 14 V.S.A. 906 requires a bond from executors and administrators as the default, and a will clause alone does not strike it out. The Probate Division can waive or reduce the bond, but that is a court decision - often requiring all interested heirs to sign a waiver filed with the Probate Division - not something the will grants on its own. Plan on the bond until the court says otherwise.

No. Vermont's notary statute - 26 V.S.A. chapter 103, the Uniform Law on Notarial Acts - contains no bond requirement anywhere in its commissioning or renewal provisions. Commissions run through the Office of Professional Regulation (OPR) inside the Secretary of State's office, on a fixed two-year term. If a website is trying to sell you a "Vermont notary bond," you are being sold something the state does not ask for.

No. Vermont's actual title bond (23 V.S.A. 2020, bond in lieu of title) has always been restricted to Vermont residents. What out-of-state buyers used was the separate 15-year registration exemption - not a bond at all - and that door closed in 2023-2024. Effective July 1, 2023 the DMV stopped processing out-of-state-address registrations without proof of a genuine Vermont connection, and in 2024 Vermont ended the rolling 15-year registration exemption for older vehicles. If you are not a Vermont resident, Vermont is no longer a title workaround.

The Vermont Department of Financial Regulation (DFR) licenses and oversees the surety insurers and producers authorized to write bonds in the state. The bond form itself is filed with whichever agency requires it - the DMV for dealer bonds, the Probate Division for fiduciary bonds, FMCSA for freight broker bonds - but the carrier standing behind the bond and the agent placing it answer to DFR. We place Vermont bonds through carriers admitted in the state.

Usually yes. License bonds like the auto dealer bond are underwritten primarily on credit, so strong credit earns the low end of the 1-3% premium range while weaker credit pushes the rate higher - but specialty markets still approve most applicants. Probate bonds look more at the size of the estate and the fiduciary's standing than at a credit score. Tell us the bond and the amount and we will quote the realistic rate for your situation the same day.