South Dakota Motor Vehicle Title Bond

What a South Dakota title bond does

When you hold a vehicle but cannot produce a properly assigned certificate of title, South Dakota will not issue a new title on your word alone. Under SDCL § 32-3-64.1, the state accepts a surety bond in place of the missing proof of ownership. The bond, which South Dakota calls a bonded title, promises that anyone who later proves a better claim to the vehicle (a prior owner, a lienholder, a subsequent purchaser) will be paid their loss up to the bond amount. On the strength of that promise South Dakota Department of Revenue, Motor Vehicle Division (through the county treasurers) issues a title in your name. It is a real title: you can register, insure, drive and sell the vehicle. The only difference is a brand on the face of the title that lapses when the bond term runs without a claim.

Three parties sign on. You are the principal. South Dakota Department of Revenue and every potential claimant are the obligees. Surety One, Inc. is the surety that guarantees your claim. If the surety ever pays, it looks to you under the indemnity agreement in the application, which is why we ask for evidence of how you came to possess the vehicle before issuing.

How much bond do you need in South Dakota?

South Dakota fixes the penal sum at 1.5× vehicle value. We round up to the next $1,000 because sureties issue in whole thousands and the DMV never objects to a bond that exceeds the requirement.

At $20 per $1,000 that $13,000 bond carries a premium of $260.00, plus the $85 administrative fee, for a total of $345.00 covering the full 3-year term. Nothing renews and nothing is refunded; the premium is fully earned when the bond is executed.

Where the value comes from. The Motor Vehicle Division determines the current value from the submitted information and photos (it may require an MVD agent inspection) and issues a Vehicle Valuation for Surety Bond form.

How to get a bonded title in South Dakota

1. Only for vehicles 30 or more years old with no record on file and no bill of sale.
2. Submit Form 1203, the $2 record search fee, photos and an affidavit of how the vehicle was acquired to the MVD in Pierre; the MVD runs a nationwide title search and an NCIC check.
3. If there is no record, the MVD values the vehicle and returns the valuation form; the applicant buys a bond of at least 1.5 times the value from a surety licensed in South Dakota and files Form 1001 with the documents and fees at the county treasurer within 24 months.
4. The title carries a bond disclaimer and the department recalls the title if the affidavit is false.

Once the bond is in hand, file it with the title application at South Dakota Department of Revenue, Motor Vehicle Division. The executed bond carries the surety's power of attorney, is signed and witnessed as the state requires, and matches the vehicle description on your application exactly. Any discrepancy between the bond and the application (a transposed VIN digit, a name that does not match your ID) is the most common reason a bonded title is rejected.

South Dakota title bond FAQ

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Written and reviewed by C. Constantin Poindexter, MA, JD, CPCU, AFSB, ASLI, ARe, AINS, AIS, CPLP, founder of Surety One, Inc. and CEO of Janus Assurance Re, with more than thirty years of surety and reinsurance underwriting experience. Author of The Contractor's Guide to Surety Bonds. Reflects state law and DMV practice as of November 5, 2026. More about the author →