Scrap metal license—Surety bond—Action for recovery

Before issuing a scrap metal license to a scrap metal processor or scrap metal recycler, the department of licensing shall require the applicant to file with the department a surety bond in the amount of ten thousand dollars, running to the state of Washington, and executed by a surety company authorized to do business in the state of Washington. The bond shall be approved as to form by the attorney general and conditioned upon the licensee conducting the business in conformity with the provisions of this chapter. Except as prohibited elsewhere in this chapter, any person who has suffered loss or damage by reason of fraud or gross negligence, or an intentional or reckless violation of the terms of this chapter, or misrepresentation on the part of the scrap metal processor or recycler, may institute an action for recovery against the licensee and surety upon the bond. However, the aggregate liability of the surety to all persons shall in no event exceed the amount of the bond.