Tennessee Plumbers & Steamfitters 43 bonds.
$2,000 flat.
United Association Local No. 43 in Chattanooga requires a signatory mechanical contractor to post a $50,000 wage and welfare bond guaranteeing union-scale wages and health and welfare fund contributions. This is a private requirement of Local 43's collective bargaining agreement, not a Tennessee statute. Ours is $2,000 flat.
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How much does a Tennessee Plumbers & Steamfitters 43 bond cost?
$2,000 at the $50,000 amount, the same for every applicant.
Three steps. One sitting.
Signatory status with Local 43 is waiting on this one filing. Here's the entire process:
Apply online
Business details, an effective date, and a one-time consent to a soft credit pull. That is the application.
Pay & e-sign
This bond is checkout-priced at $2,000 flat, so it issues the moment you pay. Issued when you pay. One soft credit pull, never a hard inquiry, and it never affects your score.
File with the local
Your executed bond and power of attorney arrive by email, ready to file with UA Local 43 so your signatory status stays current. Wet-ink original mailed on request.
What it is and who needs it.
What the bond actually guarantees
United Association Local No. 43 is the Chattanooga-based plumbers and steamfitters local, chartered in 1890 and representing pipe trades workers across southeast Tennessee. A contractor who signs Local 43's collective bargaining agreement agrees to pay union-scale wages and to remit contributions to the local's health & welfare fund covering its members.
The wage welfare bond backs those obligations for a signatory contractor. It is a three-party arrangement: you (the principal), the surety carrier, and UA Local 43 and its benefit funds (the obligee / protected parties). If a signatory contractor fails to pay covered wages or remit fund contributions, the local can recover against the bond.
It is not insurance for you — if the surety pays a claim, you repay the surety. This is a private contractual requirement of the collective bargaining agreement, not a Tennessee statute, so the $50,000 amount is set by the local rather than a public statute. The bond must stay on file for as long as you hold signatory status, so we track the term and send renewal notices ahead of expiration.
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 premium covers a one-year term from the effective date you choose; a longer term is the same price per year, chosen at checkout.
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 local. Your executed bond and power of attorney arrive by email, ready to file with UA Local 43 so your signatory status stays current. Wet-ink original mailed on request.
What sets the price
The premium is fixed at $2,000 at the $50,000 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 — business details, an effective date, and a soft-pull credit consent that never affects your score.
Start the application →Common questions.
Other Tennessee bonds.
Been told you need a different amount?
Price and requirements checked on the carrier’s application, . Page updated .
Local 43 signatory status waiting on one bond.
$2,000 flat, no quote process, bond often issued in the same sitting. Free until issued.