Washington probate & fiduciary bonds.
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Before the court issues letters, most fiduciaries have to provide a bond. It guarantees you’ll faithfully execute the duty of the trust according to law. The court sets the amount to the size of the estate — and we underwrite it. A surety specialist reviews your file and returns a quote, usually within one business day.
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How much does a Washington probate & fiduciary bond cost?
It is underwritten: the premium is quoted from the bond amount and your financial picture, so there is no flat price to show.
Built for the grant of letters.
The court won’t issue letters until the bond is filed and approved, so the bond is usually the last step before you can act. Here is the whole process:
Send us the file
Apply online with the order or petition setting the bond, the estate’s value, and the fiduciary’s details. The estate size and any restricted assets drive the penal sum.
A surety specialist underwrites it
A specialist reviews the file, a personal credit check, and any financials, then returns a quote. The amount is set by the court — underwriting decides approval and any collateral on a large estate.
Execute & file
Once you bind, we issue the executed bond to the State of Washington as the statute directs, ready for the court to approve so letters can issue.
How a probate bond works, and what to have ready.
Why the court asks for it
A court has appointed you, or is about to, to manage someone else's money: as executor or administrator of an estate, or as a guardian or conservator. The court can require a bond before you act.
Who it protects
The estate and the people entitled to it: heirs, creditors, or the person under guardianship. If money is mishandled, they can recover the loss from the bond, up to the bond amount.
If there is a claim
The surety pays a valid claim and you repay the surety. A will can ask the court to waive the bond; the court decides.
Have these ready
- The court order or letters appointing you, or your petition if the appointment is pending
- The court and case number
- The bond amount the court set
- A summary of the assets you will control
- The will, if there is one
- Your attorney's name and contact details
What it is and who needs it.
What a fiduciary bond protects
When the court appoints you to handle someone else’s money — as the personal representative of an estate, or a guardian or conservator for a protected person — it usually requires a bond before issuing letters.
The fiduciary bond guarantees you faithfully execute the duty of the trust according to law: that you inventory the assets, account honestly, and don’t misuse the estate. If you breach those duties, the bond makes the estate or protected person whole — and the surety looks to you to repay it.
Because the surety stands behind the estate, the bond is underwritten on your personal credit and finances, and a large estate can require collateral. A will can direct that no bond be required, but the court may still require one; under RCW 11.28.185 the court can also reduce the bond on a proper showing or substitute other security. Guardianship and conservatorship bonds are governed by RCW 11.130. 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 court bond answers to the court and the party its order protects: if the judgment or order the bond secures is not satisfied, that party can claim against it, up to the penal sum the court set.
The surety pays a valid claim after the court rules, and you repay the surety. A court bond is a guarantee of your performance, not insurance for you.
Renewal and term
Term and renewal are set in the underwriter's quote; a court bond usually runs until the case or appeal it secures is resolved.
Keep the bond in force for as long as the obligation behind it runs.
How to file it
Execute & file. Once you bind, we issue the executed bond to the State of Washington as the statute directs, ready for the court to approve so letters can issue.
What sets the price
Court bonds are underwritten: the premium is quoted from the bond amount the court sets and your financial picture, so there is no flat price to show.
The application takes about ten minutes.
These are the actual underwriting fields — the estate, the bond amount the court set, the fiduciary, and your finances. Submit once and a surety specialist returns a quote, typically within one business day. Free until your bond is issued.
Start the application →Common questions.
Other Washington bonds.
The same bond in nearby states.
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Get bonded so the court can issue letters.
Send us the estate details and the amount the court set, and a surety specialist sizes, underwrites, and quotes the bond — typically within one business day. Free until your bond is issued.