New Hampshire retail vehicle dealer bonds.
$250 flat.
New Hampshire requires a retail vehicle dealer to file a $25,000 surety bond under RSA 261:98 before the Division of Motor Vehicles will issue a dealer license — ours is $250 flat, and the price you see is the checkout price. The application includes a credit consent, but it authorizes a soft pull only — a soft inquiry that never affects your score.
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How much does a New Hampshire retail vehicle dealer bond cost?
$250 at the $25,000 amount, the same for every applicant.
Three steps. One sitting.
A dealer bond is about the simplest filing your DMV license needs. Here's the entire process:
Apply online
Business details, an effective date, and a one-time consent that authorizes a soft credit pull. That is the application.
Pay & e-sign
Dealer bonds like this are among the thousands of bond types that issue right after purchase. Issued when you pay. One soft credit pull, never a hard inquiry, and it never affects your score.
File with the DMV
Your executed bond and power of attorney arrive by email, ready to file with your retail vehicle dealer license application or renewal. Wet-ink original mailed on request.
What it is and who needs it.
What the bond actually guarantees
New Hampshire licenses retail vehicle dealers through the Division of Motor Vehicles (part of the Department of Safety), and RSA 261:98 conditions that license — along with the licenses of auto wholesale dealers and automotive recycling dealers — on a $25,000 surety bond or equivalent proof of financial responsibility executed by a surety company authorized to transact business in the state.
It's a three-party arrangement: you (the principal), the surety carrier, and the State of New Hampshire (the obligee), with your customers as the protected parties. RSA 261:98 runs the bond to natural persons who buy a vehicle from you and suffer a loss from a dealer default, a failure to deliver clear title, a stolen vehicle, or a mileage-disclosure violation.
It is not insurance for you — if the surety pays a valid claim, you repay the surety. The bond must stay in the business name and business legal address, and it has to stay active for the life of your license, so we track it and send renewal reminders ahead of your DMV renewal date.
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 $25,000 bond amount. You then repay the surety: a surety bond is a guarantee of your performance, not insurance for you.
Renewal and term
The premium covers a one-year term from the effective date you choose.
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
File with the DMV. Your executed bond and power of attorney arrive by email, ready to file with your retail vehicle dealer license application or renewal. Wet-ink original mailed on request.
What sets the price
The premium is fixed at $250 at the $25,000 amount for every applicant: the carrier’s rate book prices this bond by the form, not by your credit or your business profile.
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, issued instantly.
These are the actual issuing fields, including a one-time consent that authorizes a soft credit pull only — never a hard inquiry.
Start the application →Common questions.
Other New Hampshire bonds.
Been told you need a different amount?
Price and requirements checked on the carrier’s application, . Page updated .
Finish your NH DMV dealer license today.
$250 flat, soft pull only, bond often issued in the same sitting. Free until issued.