Opinion ID: 1239804
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Heading: Scope of Coverage Under the Surety Bond Provisions.

Text: Elworth first argues that the provisions of the bond provide broader coverage than our retail motor vehicle surety bond statute requires. We quickly dismiss this argument, as it is without merit. Where the bond is a statutory bond, the surety's liability must be measured by the statute rather than by the form of the bond. State Sur. Co. v. Lensing, 249 N.W.2d 608, 611 (Iowa 1977). We compare the provisions of the bond statute with the provisions of the bond itself. The statutory provisions are read into the bond. See, e.g., 12 Am.Jur.2d Bonds § 27, at 497 (1964) ([A] statute providing for the giving of a bond becomes part of the bond, and imports into it any omitted conditions required by the statute.). They prevail over additional or contrary bond provisions, which are treated as surplusage without effect. Community Sav. Bank v. Western Sur. Co., 232 Iowa 1381, 1385, 8 N.W.2d 427, 429 (1943). We will not enlarge the scope of a statutory bond beyond the express terms of the statute. Zapf v. Ridenour, 198 Iowa 1006, 1009, 200 N.W. 618, 619 (1924).