Moorhead Tree Contractor Bond
What it is & who requires it
Anyone compensated for tree care services within Moorhead city limits. The city draws the line at the service rather than at the company: a business offering tree planting alone does not need the license, but one that also prunes, treats or removes does. Moorhead publicizes this license to residents as a consumer protection and tells property owners to ask a contractor to show the license before work begins or when a crew is selling door to door — which makes an unlicensed crew a competitive problem as well as a legal one for the contractors who do hold it. Two credentials ride with the bond: liability insurance and workers’ compensation coverage, both checked at licensing. This is the third distinct Moorhead instrument in this directory alongside the driveway and sidewalk bond and the right-of-way excavation bond, and it is by far the smallest.
Obligee: City of Moorhead (City Clerk; Forestry). Citation: City of Moorhead Tree Contractor license application (merged application packet), checklist item “Bond: $1,000”, citing Moorhead City Code § 6-2A-6, Section B, and requiring the bond to be delivered to the city clerk; City of Moorhead, Business Licenses and Permits — Tree Contractor: “A person or business that is compensated for performing these services in city limits must be licensed… The license ensures the contractor has liability and workers compensation insurance, and has obtained a performance bond. The performance bond is issued by an insurance company or bank to guarantee satisfactory completion of a project by a contractor. The license must be renewed annually.”; “Businesses offering tree planting services are not required to have a license unless they also perform the additional tree contractor services mentioned above.”.
Bond amount
The required bond amount is $1,000.
How to get it
This bond is individually underwritten, so it is not issued instantly. Request a quote and a licensed producer follows up to walk you through it.
Request a bond quote
Tell us about the bond and the project. A licensed producer follows up — these bonds are individually underwritten, so they are not issued instantly.
Term & renewal
Term: Delivered to the city clerk with the license application and held as a performance bond guaranteeing satisfactory completion of the contractor’s work.
Renewal: Annual — the city states in terms that the license must be renewed each year.
Filing
Delivered to the city clerk with the merged license application. The figure renders because the city’s own application prints it as a flat sum against a checkbox, with the code section cited beside it, and offers no cash or deposit alternative. It is worth noting how the amount was found, because it is a pattern worth repeating: the city’s license page describes the bond in words and states no number at all, and the number appears only on the application packet the page links to. A description is not a figure; the form is. ⚠ The ordinance text at the cited section could not be read directly — Moorhead’s code sits on a platform this harness could not reach — so the amount rests on the city’s own current application.
Source
Verified against the obligee source (last checked 2026-09-07).
Related Minnesota bonds
Frequently asked questions
- Who requires the Moorhead Tree Contractor Bond?
- It’s required by City of Moorhead (City Clerk; Forestry) (City of Moorhead Tree Contractor license application (merged application packet), checklist item “Bond: $1,000”, citing Moorhead City Code § 6-2A-6, Section B, and requiring the bond to be delivered to the city clerk; City of Moorhead, Business Licenses and Permits — Tree Contractor: “A person or business that is compensated for performing these services in city limits must be licensed… The license ensures the contractor has liability and workers compensation insurance, and has obtained a performance bond. The performance bond is issued by an insurance company or bank to guarantee satisfactory completion of a project by a contractor. The license must be renewed annually.”; “Businesses offering tree planting services are not required to have a license unless they also perform the additional tree contractor services mentioned above.”). Anyone compensated for tree care services within Moorhead city limits. The city draws the line at the service rather than at the company: a business offering tree planting alone does not need the license, but one that also prunes, treats or removes does. Moorhead publicizes this license to residents as a consumer protection and tells property owners to ask a contractor to show the license before work begins or when a crew is selling door to door — which makes an unlicensed crew a competitive problem as well as a legal one for the contractors who do hold it. Two credentials ride with the bond: liability insurance and workers’ compensation coverage, both checked at licensing. This is the third distinct Moorhead instrument in this directory alongside the driveway and sidewalk bond and the right-of-way excavation bond, and it is by far the smallest.
- How much is the Moorhead Tree Contractor Bond?
- The bond amount is $1,000.
- How do I get the Moorhead Tree Contractor Bond?
- This bond is individually underwritten, so it is not issued instantly. Request a quote and a licensed producer follows up to walk you through it.
- What is the term?
- Delivered to the city clerk with the license application and held as a performance bond guaranteeing satisfactory completion of the contractor’s work. Renewal: Annual — the city states in terms that the license must be renewed each year.
- Is this bond insurance for me?
- No. It protects the obligee and the public — not you. If a valid claim is paid, you repay the surety.
- How is this requirement verified?
- We verify it against the obligee’s primary source (last checked 2026-09-07); the source link is on this page.
