Louisiana used motor vehicle dealer bonds.
From $513 for the year.
Also known as the Louisiana auto dealer bond or car dealer bond.
Every applicant for a new or renewed Louisiana used motor vehicle dealer license must deposit a $50,000 continuing surety bond with the Louisiana Used Motor Vehicle Commission (LUMVC), written on the LUMVC's own bond form. The one-year premium starts at $513.
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How much does a Louisiana used motor vehicle dealer bond cost?
From $513; the exact price shows at the application once you enter your bond amount.
From application to a bond on file with the LUMVC.
The commission will not issue or renew a used dealer license without the bond, and a cancelled bond revokes the license. Here is the whole process:
Send us the dealership
Apply online with the ownership, the trade name exactly as it reads on your LUMVC application and sign, the physical location of the lot, the parish, and the entity type — the same fields the commission's bond form asks for. One application per licensed location.
See your exact price
The one-year premium starts at $513 for the $50,000 bond. The application includes a soft credit pull that never affects your score, and shows your exact price before you pay — most applicants land at or near that starting price.
Execute & file with the commission
Once you bind and pay, we issue the bond on the LUMVC form with the bond number, effective date, surety seal and power of attorney attached, ready to submit with your license packet or renewal.
What it is and who needs it.
What the Louisiana used dealer bond guarantees
Independent used car lots in Louisiana are licensed by the Louisiana Used Motor Vehicle Commission, created under La. R.S. 32:782 to develop the independent used vehicle industry and protect the consumers who buy from it. Under La. R.S. 32:791(G)(1), every applicant for licensure or renewal as a used motor vehicle dealer must show proof of responsibility by depositing a continuing bond of $50,000 with a commercial surety authorized in Louisiana and approved by the commission.
The bond is payable to the State of Louisiana through the commission for five purposes set out in R.S. 32:791(G)(3): the proper disposition of taxes, license fees, tags and certificates of title; indemnifying a buyer who suffers loss because the dealer failed to handle registration, pay sales tax, deliver a title or remit a fee; restitution the commission imposes; unpaid penalties, fines and hearing costs up to $25,000; and attorney fees or court costs the commission assesses. The surety's aggregate liability is capped at $50,000 in any calendar year.
The commission is strict about form. Its dealer packet requires the bond on the LUMVC bond form or its exact language, with the exact ownership, trade name and physical address, the bond number, effective and ending dates, the surety's seal and an attached power of attorney. One bond can cover several licenses at the same location, such as used dealer and auction, but every additional lot needs a new, separate $50,000 bond. At renewal a continuation certificate keeps the same bond in force.
It is not insurance for the dealer. If the surety pays a valid claim, the dealership repays the surety. That indemnity is why the bond is underwritten on the owners' credit and history, and why a dealership with thin or damaged credit can be asked for collateral. We tell you what your file needs before you commit.
You need this bond if you’re
Claims, renewal, filing, and what sets the price.
If a claim is made
A claim comes from the party the bond protects, the obligee named on the form, when the duty the bond guarantees is not met.
The surety investigates and pays a valid claim, up to the $50,000 bond amount. You then repay the surety: a surety bond is a guarantee of your performance, not insurance for you.
Renewal and term
The term is set on the carrier’s application; the premium covers the period shown there.
Renewal falls on the statutory date, December 31, in the year your term ends.
Renew before the expiry date to keep the bond in force: the license, permit or contract it backs expects continuous coverage.
How to file it
Execute & file with the commission. Once you bind and pay, we issue the bond on the LUMVC form with the bond number, effective date, surety seal and power of attorney attached, ready to submit with your license packet or renewal.
What sets the price
From $513; your exact price appears at the application once you enter the amount.
One soft credit pull, never a hard inquiry, and it never affects your score.
Where a check runs, it decides approval; the rate is the same for everyone approved.
One application, one soft pull.
These are the actual underwriting fields — the dealership ownership and trade name, the physical location and parish, entity type, owners, years in business, and a few history questions. The application includes a credit review; the one-year premium starts at $513 and your exact price appears there before you pay. Free until your bond is issued.
Start the application →Common questions.
Other Louisiana motor vehicle dealer bonds.
Not sure this is the one your license calls for? These are the other motor vehicle dealer bonds we write in Louisiana. Each has its own statute and bond amount.
Other Louisiana bonds.
The same bond in nearby states.
Been told you need a different amount?
Price and requirements checked on the carrier’s application, . Page updated .
Get the $50,000 bond on file with the LUMVC.
Send us the dealership — the one-year premium starts at $513, and the application sets your exact price by credit review. Free until issued.