Provision of Surety Bonds

The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) expects to put in place a contract for the provision of Surety Bonds covering the performance of deputies appointed by the Court of Protection (COP).

The tender process will appoint an insurance broker who will be responsible and accountable for the administration and management of the provision of surety bonds and for the procurement exercise to select a suitable insurer / insurers for the provision of surety bonds.

The Public Guardian (PG) was created under the Mental Capacity Act (2005). The OPG is an executive agency of the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) that supports the PG in discharging his duties.

The Mental Capacity Act (2005) makes provisions for ways in which decisions can be made on behalf of people in circumstances where they may be incapable of making such decisions personally. In such cases where the person has property or finances and no attorney in place it will be necessary to apply to the COP for an appropriate deputyship order.

Where the COP appoints a deputy it may require a surety bond to be in place for the protection of the person’s property and / or finance. The Surety Bond is a guarantee to pay any financial losses arising from the deputy’s failure to fulfil their agreed duty. The COP decides the value of the Surety Bond.

Additional information: The purpose of this PIN is to:

a) Inform the market of the prospective opportunity regarding the procurement of the Provision of Surety Bonds.

b) Notify the market of the supplier engagement day which will take place on 26 February in Nottingham.

In the first instance suppliers should register their interest in attending the supplier day by sending an email to Nicola Whiteford (nicola.whiteford@justice.gsi.gov.uk). The email should include the company name, the name of up to two attendees and their job title, email address and telephone number. The Ministry of Justice will then issue an invite to all interested parties confirming the location, timing and agenda.

The deadline for expressing an interest in the event is 18 February 2016.

The contract duration is expected to be for four years with the option to extend for a further two years.

The Contracting Authority intends to use an eTendering system in this procurement exercise and reserves the right to use a reverse auction.