Who requires it
West Virginia Division of Motor Vehicles
License & permit · West Virginia
West Virginia Motor Vehicle Dealer Bond
Most West Virginia dealer license applications under article 6 of chapter 17A must include a twenty-five-thousand-dollar surety bond in the form the commissioner of motor vehicles prescribes. Section 17A-6-4 conditions the bond so the applicant will not practice fraud or make fraudulent representations that cause financial loss to a purchaser, seller, financial institution or agency, or the State. The official Form MV-126-DS-P names the Division of Motor Vehicles as the agency that requires the bond and requires the surety to give certified-mail cancellation notice within thirty days. Section 17A-6-2a can relieve qualifying dealers from continuing that bond after three clean years of Dealer Recovery Fund participation, but Recovery Fund payments generally wait until any required dealer bond is exhausted.
Common bond amount
$25,000
Fixed face under § 17A-6-4; qualifying dealers may be exempt from continuing the bond under § 17A-6-2a.
How you file
File DMV Form MV-126-DS-P with the Division of Motor Vehicles
Renewal
Maintain while licensed unless § 17A-6-2a exemption applies
Who requires it
Applicants for and holders of West Virginia dealer licenses under W. Va. Code §17A-6 who are not exempt from the continuing surety under §17A-6-2a, including dealerships and auto auctions using Form MV-126-DS-P.
How much is required
Section 17A-6-4 fixes the amount at twenty-five thousand dollars. The statute does not publish volume tiers for this bond. Confirm with DMV whether a §17A-6-2a exemption already relieves you from posting or renewing the bond.
How to get and file it
Have a surety authorized in West Virginia complete Form MV-126-DS-P in the exact dealership or auction name on the DMV license, then file the executed bond with the dealer license application or renewal package and required fees and liability insurance certificate. Keep coverage effective from the license issue date forward unless DMV confirms a §17A-6-2a exemption. If the surety company or the dealer cancels, the surety must notify DMV by certified mail within thirty days; without timely notice the form treats the bond as remaining in force until DMV receives cancellation. Replace coverage before any gap if you are still required to be bonded.
Cost note
Twenty-five thousand dollars is the required bond amount, not the premium you pay. See bond amount vs premium. Bond amount vs premium →
Requirement checklist
- Required amount
- $25,000
- Form
- MV-126-DS-P (or other form prescribed by the commissioner)
- Exemption path
- Possible after three clean years under § 17A-6-2a with Dealer Recovery Fund participation
Official sources
Related resources
Frequently asked questions
Can I drop my West Virginia dealer bond after a few clean years?
Possibly. Section 17A-6-2a relieves dealers who, for the three years immediately preceding assessment, had no claim paid against their bond or the Dealer Recovery Fund, no license suspension or revocation, and no civil penalties from continuing the article 6 surety. Confirm your exemption status with DMV before canceling coverage.
Does the Dealer Recovery Fund replace the surety bond?
No. The Recovery Fund is an additional consumer-protection layer. Section 17A-6-2a states the board may consider fund payment only after any required dealer surety under §17A-6-4 has been exhausted.
Related West Virginia bond guides
Mortgage Broker / Lender Bond
$50,000–$250,000
West Virginia residential mortgage lenders and brokers license under article 17 of chapter 31 and must file electronic surety bonds through NMLS in favor of the State for consumers and for commissioner claims on unpaid civil administrative penalties or examination invoices. Section 31-17-4 sizes lender faces at one hundred thousand, one hundred fifty thousand, or two hundred fifty thousand dollars by West Virginia annual loan originations, except that lender licensees who service West Virginia mortgage loans file a two-hundred-thousand-dollar bond. Broker faces step from fifty thousand to one hundred thousand dollars by West Virginia originations, and a broker must post one hundred fifty thousand dollars before participating in a table-funded residential mortgage loan.
Collection Agency Bond
$5,000 per office
No person may operate a collection agency in West Virginia without a business franchise registration certificate—treated as the collection-agency license—and a West Virginia office. Section 47-16-4 also requires each applicant to file a $5,000 surety bond for every principal office and every branch office. The bond must be issued by a company licensed to write surety in West Virginia, run with the registration tax period, and be approved by the Tax Commissioner before the license may issue.
Money Transmitter Bond
$100,000 / $300,000–$1,000,000
Licensees under West Virginia’s checks, money-order, money-transmission, currency-transportation, and currency-exchange article must post a surety bond acceptable to the Commissioner of Financial Institutions. Section 32A-2-10 sets one hundred thousand dollars for licensees that issue or sell checks or money orders or that engage in currency exchange, and three hundred thousand dollars for licensees that receive money for transmission by wire, facsimile, or electronic transfer or that engage in currency transportation. A licensee that engages in multiple covered activities posts the higher amount. At renewal the bond increases by one percent of annual West Virginia volume above ten million dollars, rounded to the nearest thousand, but never above one million dollars. Cash deposits and pledges of cash-equivalent instruments are not accepted instead of the surety bond.
Surety basics (not repeated here)
Universal surety concepts explained once—linked here instead of repeated on every state or bond page.
Continue with a West Virginia application
West Virginia will be preselected. Choose your bond type in the application—we confirm the correct product against your agency form before anything is issued.
Last verified 2026-08-11. This guide is based on verified educational content and official sources.
Agents Ready to Help
Share your agency checklist or bond form and we will confirm the agency, amount, and filing steps before issuing.
Talk to the pro →