A job requiring a payment and performance bond will usually require a bid bond, to bid the job. When the job is awarded to the winning bid, a payment and performance bond will then be required as a security to the job completion. For example, a contractor may cause a performance bond to be issued in favor of a client for whom the contractor is constructing a building. If the contractor fails to construct the building according to the specifications laid out by the contract (most often due to the bankruptcy of the contractor), the client is guaranteed compensation for any monetary loss up to the amount of the performance bond.
Performance bonds are commonly used in the construction and development of real property, where an owner or investor may require the developer to assure that contractors or project managers procure such bonds in order to guarantee that the value of the work will not be lost in the case of an unfortunate event (such as insolvency of the contractor). In other cases, a performance bond may be requested to be issued in other large contracts besides civil construction projects. Another example of this use is in commodity contracts where the seller is asked to provide a Bond to reassure the buyer that if the commodity being sold is not in fact delivered (for whatever reason) the buyer will at least receive compensation for his lost costs.
Performance bonds are generally issued as part of a ‘Performance and Payment Bond’, where a payment bond guarantees that the contractor will pay the labour and material costs they are obliged to.
Performance bond cost
Surety bond companies calculate the premium they charge for surety bonds based on three primary criteria: bond type, bond amount, and the applicant’s risk. Once the bond type, amount, and applicant risk are adequately assessed, a surety bond underwriter is able to assign an appropriate surety bond price.