(a) "Admitted surety insurer" means a corporate insurer or a reciprocal or interinsurance exchange to which the Insurance Commissioner has issued a certificate of authority to transact surety insurance in this state, as defined in Section 105 of the Insurance Code.
§ 995.120.Admitted Surety Insurer
Title 14. Of Miscellaneous Provisions · Chapter 2. Bonds and Undertakings · Article 1. Preliminary Provisions and Definitions · Enacted 1982 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 995.120 defines an admitted surety insurer as a corporate insurer or reciprocal or interinsurance exchange holding an Insurance Commissioner certificate of authority to transact surety insurance, and treats terms like authorized surety company, bonding company, or corporate surety in other statutes as meaning the same thing.
Full Text of § 995.120
(b) For the purpose of application of this chapter to a bond given pursuant to any statute of this state, the phrases "admitted surety insurer," "authorized surety company," "bonding company," "corporate surety," and comparable phrases used in the statute mean "admitted surety insurer" as defined in this section.
Plain-English Summary
This is the definition behind the corporate side of suretyship. An admitted surety insurer is a corporate insurer, or a reciprocal or interinsurance exchange, that the Insurance Commissioner has certified to transact surety insurance in California, as Insurance Code § 105 defines that authority.
Subdivision (b) handles translation. Other statutes calling for a bond sometimes use their own vocabulary — "authorized surety company," "bonding company," "corporate surety," or similar phrases. Wherever they do, this chapter reads those phrases as meaning "admitted surety insurer" as defined here, keeping the qualification standard consistent no matter which statute is calling for the bond.
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes an insurer an "admitted surety insurer" under this chapter?
Holding a certificate of authority from the Insurance Commissioner to transact surety insurance in California, as defined in Insurance Code § 105.
Can a reciprocal or interinsurance exchange qualify?
Yes, § 995.120(a) includes a reciprocal or interinsurance exchange alongside a corporate insurer.
If another statute calls for a "bonding company" or "corporate surety," does that mean something different from an admitted surety insurer?
No. Section 995.120(b) treats those and comparable phrases as meaning admitted surety insurer as defined in this section.
Amendment History
Added by Stats. 1982, Ch. 998, Sec. 1.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 28, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: admitted surety insurer california definitioncorporate surety meaning california