There have been a lot of recent changes to the U.S. Customs bond industry, from sureties pulling out of the Customs bond business to Managing General Agents (MGA) moving to other surety markets. Unfortunately, Customs will not allow the surety on a bond to be changed without re-writing the bond. Therefore, these types of changes often create additional work and potential issues for principals. When a surety pulls out of the Customs business they often issue non-renewal on the bonds they write, which would result in a need to re-write the bond with a new surety. Similarly, if a MGA moves to a new surety market, the bonds would need to re-written to change the market.
Therefore, when placing a U.S. Customs bond there are many things to consider, such as the quality of the surety company writing the bond, the cost of the bond and the services offered by the writing company, to name a few. While new markets are entering the business and other markets are leaving the business, the uncertainty can be very troubling. We have had long lasting relationships with most of the top surety companies that write Customs bonds, many of these relationships exceed 10 years, and we are extraordinarily proud with the long-term relationships we have had with Chubb/Ace, over 72 years, CNA Surety, over 36 years, Travelers Surety, over 23 years.
All of these surety companies have relied on our office to handle the intricacies of their Customs bonds for many years. If your office or your client has a concern with the current market they are with and would like to explore placing the bond with one of our markets, please feel free to contact our office.