Overview of California Process Server Bond Requirements
Process server bonds are a type of surety bond required of individuals who act as process servers in court proceedings. These bonds are required by counties in California, in order for process servers to legally deliver court documents and legal notices to defendants.
Process servers themselves are not part of proceedings. This is why they require a bond, to guarantee their compliance with the provisions of the Business and Professions Code (BPC) of the State of California.
Process server bonds also serve as protection to the state, in cases in which process servers break the law, whether out of neglect or intentionally. In such cases, a claim can be filed against the bond, and the claiming party (typically the state) can obtain compensation up to the full amount of the bond– also known as the penal sum of the bond.
See our ‘What is a surety bond’ guide for a more detailed explanation of how surety bonds work.
The following sections contain information regarding the cost of your bond, how to get bonded with bad credit, how to avoid claims, and how you can get your own California process server surety bond.
Call us at 866.450.3412 for more information regarding bonds for process servers, or any other surety bond-related questions.
Process Server Bond California Cost
Your process server bond’s cost is only a small percentage of the penal sum of the bond. Process server bonds in California have a total amount of $2,000.
The cost of obtaining your bond is only a fraction of that total amount, though. The exact cost is determined by sureties when you apply for your bond. Sureties look at your personal credit score, and other indicators of your financial situation to determine the rate at which they can issue your bond. As a rule, applicants with high credit scores are offered the lowest rates.
To receive a free quote on your bond, just fill out our bond application form, and we’ll get back to you shortly.
Getting Bonded With Bad Credit
While sureties offer lower rates to applicants with high credit scores, those with low scores can also get bonded, just as easily.
Through our Bad Credit Program, applicants whose credit score disqualifies them for standard market rates can still get a bond. Bond rates for bad credit applicants are slightly higher than standard market rates. This is due to the increased risk for sureties when bonding applicants with lower credit scores.
Bond cost is determined on an individual basis. Visit the program page to find out more about the conditions of the program and how you can get your bond.
Claims Against Your Process Server Bond
Sections 22350-22360 of Chapter 16, Division 8 of the BPC specify the conditions under which process servers in California must operate. Since process server bonds in California are county-specific, certain counties may have additional requirements that process servers will need to comply with.
For example, San Bernardino and El Dorado counties issue process server registrations that are valid for two years at a time, so process server bonds in these counties are also valid for two years.
A claim can be brought against a process server bond if the process server has violated its conditions– if, for example, they have not delivered a legal notice to a defendant or other court documents.
When a claim is filed against a bond, the surety which has issued the bond may compensate claimants up to the full penal sum of the bond. If this happens, the bonded process server must repay the surety in full for the compensation it has extended.
Get Your California Process Server Bond Today!
Ready to apply for your bond? Simply complete and submit our online surety bond application form. When we receive your application, we’ll contact you with a free quote on your bond and additional details on how to complete your application. Once we have all the information we require, it takes about two working days for the bond to be issued.
We will then send you a digital copy of the bond per email, as well as the original copy via regular mail.
Don’t hesitate to call our agents at 866.450.3412 if you have any questions about the bonding process or requirements. We’re happy to help!
