Legal Question in Business Law in Washington

Re: Contractor Bonds

As I understand your message, what you need is a surety bond, which in this case would be a promise from a third party to the Everett Herald that if you do not fulfill your contract, that third party will pay the Everett Herald something to compensate. If this is correct, there really isn't a generic form, as far as I know. Rather, whoever is going to post the bond (whether a bank, an insurance company, or some other entity) will have their own form that they will want completed. They are the ones taking the chance on the deal, so each company will have specific information that it wants to be sure it gets from you.

I have in fact not heard of banks providing surety bonds. If you have a company that is going to provide you with the bond, check with them for the needed forms. If you are not sure what company to approach for the bond, you might start by asking the Everett Herald who they can recommend, or ask other contractors who do the same kind of work you do to tell you who they work with. If none of that works, you could try going to www.nasbp.org. This is a national organization of surety bond providers, although they focus on the construction industry. You can find on that website a list of surety bond providers in Washington State. Again, because these companies focus on construction work, these providers may not be able to help you, but may be able to refer you to a provider that will.

Good luck!