What Are Bounty Hunters?

In some cases, you may hear a bounty hunter referred to as a “bail enforcement agents.” These people provide a legal service to obtain defendants. Sometimes, depending on the state, the bail bondsman may also be required to be present at the time of apprehension to be sure the bounty hunter has the correct person. If for some reason they obtain the wrong person, both the bail bondsman and the bounty hunter can be charged with false arrest.

Depending on the state of residency, that will determine what laws are in place for these occurrences. Some states have very strict laws for obtaining a defendant who has skipped bail.

When a person hires a bail bonds company Read more »

Most Asked Questions About Bail Bonds Recovery

Questions about fugitive recovery agents, also known as “bounty hunters,” are very popular. Understanding bail recovery is something both the defendant and the cosigner should be willing to understand before engaging a bail bondsman. In the event that a defendant “skips bail,” meaning they do not show up for scheduled court appearances as agreed and cannot be easily located, a bounty hunter is retained to bring the defendant back.

Question: Why is bail bond recovery important to a bondsman?

Answer: Bail bonds companies are businesses, and a business relies (mostly) on one thing: money. In the bail bond process, the defendant or cosigner is responsible for paying a 10% fee in exchange for the services that the bail bond company provides. That 10% fee is income to that bail bond company. Although most bail bondsmen only accept a defendant as a client when they feel the individual show up to court, sometimes that doesn’t happen. If a defendant misses court, the court will demand that the entire bail amount be paid by the bail bond company. Usually, this is a significant amount of money for the bail bonds company to absorb.  Therefore, the bondsman will hire a bounty hunter to track and bring in the defendant so the bondsman is not stuck in a financial situation.

Question: What kind of authority does a bounty hunter possess?

Answer: Bounty hunters are hired to do whatever they can to bring back the defendant. It is in the best interest of the court, the bail bonds company and the defendant. They can cross state lines and enter buildings to retain a defendant. However, the bounty hunter must be certain of the defendant’s location before entering buildings.

Question: What happens when the defendant is arrested by a bounty hunter?

Answer: Once the defendant is found and arrested, he or she will be brought back to the court via a local jail.  Additionally, and most likely, their bail will be significantly increased to a higher amount or quite possibly, they will be held in jail without any bail at all. When the fugitive recovery agent apprehends a defendant, the bounty hunter will be paid by the bondsman, often more than the bondsman made from the client, but less than would have been paid to the court. For example, a bounty hunter will earn 15 to 30% of the bail amount plus all expenses incurred in apprehending the defendant. So if the bond amount was set at $10,000, the fee to the bounty hunter will be $2,000 to $3,000. In such a case, the bail bond company that was going to pay $10,000 to the court will end up saving between $7,000 and $8,000 because they used the services of a bounty hunter. Additionally, the court and general public benefit by having the fugitive back in custody to face charges.

What is Bail Enforcement?

When you hear the term “Bail Enforcement,” you may immediately get a vision of Dog the Bounty Hunter. While “The Dog” may be entertaining, simply put, “Bail Enforcement” refers to “enforcing” the agreement of a defendant to return to court and appear before a judge in a criminal case where bail has been implemented. Many people assume this is the main job of a bail bondsman, but for the most part, bondsmen get defendants out of jail. Nationally, it is estimated that 98% of defendants released on a bail bond return to court as promised. Thus, a bondsman has little need to perform bail enforcement.

That said, what bail enforcement does, is enable the bail bondsman to return the defendant to court or jail, he or she feels the defendant will not go to court or has missed court willfully. Overall, bail enforcement is allowed in order to protect the general public by enforcing the court’s order to stand before a judge.

Generally, before any a bondsman will return a defendant to jail, Read more »

How Do Bail Bonds Work?

When someone is arrested, he or she will contact a bail bondsman directly or may call a friend or relative, who may call a bondsman. While it’s possible to obtain bail without a bondsman, it is not very common for friends or family members to post the bail themselves, as it is usually set at a very high price (in excess or $10,000 and on up to over $1 million). Whoever contacts the bail bondsman should be able to provide all available information, such as the name of the jail, the type of crime said to have been committed, defendant’s name and date of birth, and the amount of the bond.

A professional bondsman will explain Read more »

What Exactly Does a Bail Bondsman Do?

A bail bondsman’s responsibilities include answering phones and answering questions from family members and friends of the defendant. On most occasions, bail agents will meet with the families involved, or friends, and complete the bail bond process so that bail can be posted immediately. When bail bondsmen aren’t answering telephones, their keeping up with clients appearances in court as well as the progress of their cases.  Often, a bondsman will deal with attorneys and the court system regarding these issues and a lot of the time, they are able to stop problems or errors before they occur, usually due to a lack of communication.

People, who have experience with a bondsman, probably see a much different view than the rest. Bondsmen are trusted advisers in a sense that can help people who are in trouble and provide them with a legitimate and financially feasible way of getting out of jail. Basically, a bail agent runs a sales environment and needs to uphold service to their customers in order to properly run a good business.

Over time and with perpetual media, people have gotten the wrong idea about a bail agent’s persona. Sometimes people confuse the role of a bail agent verses the role of a fugitive recovering agent (aka “bounty hunter”). People see these roles as the same and don’t differentiate their real purpose. This is due mostly, to the fact that a lot of people have never been in a situation where they have had to use a bail bondsman.

In the state of California, the term “bail agent” means, Read more »

What Happens When Some Jumps Bail?

Question:So this is like in the movies when somebody jumps bail the bail bondsperson is involved because they’ve got a vested interest in this person making it back to court.

Answer:Well, it’s not like the movies, however, you are absolutely right… the bondsman has a significant financial interested in the defendant going to court because the person writing that check at the end of the day would be the bail agent.

If a defendant doesn’t show up for a required court appearance (called “failure to appear“), the bail bondsman basically has 6 months to get them back into the system – meaning in jail or in court. You should know that if the defendant was sick or they have a flat tire or something simple, we can get them back into the system easily without incident via a call to the court and simple paperwork.

However, if the intent of the defendant is to leave the country or leave the state or just hide out and not show up for court, then it is incumbent upon the bail bondsman and the indemnitor (the person who signed the bail contract) to get the person back into court.

Click to find the California Laws on Failure to Appear.

Do I Need Collateral for a Bail Bond?

No Collateral Bail Options

One consideration in deciding to use a bail bondsman is collateral, which may or may not be required.  For the most part, it’s up to the bondsman if collateral is required for the bond. While not always the case, most bondsmen will require collateral equaling and sometimes exceeding the amount of the bond. One hundred-fifty percent (150%) of the bond as collateral is a traditional number in the bail industry. Collateral covers the bail company if the defendant fails to appear in court and needs to be found and returned to jail or court.

The factors that the bondsman will look at when deciding about collateral requirements include the amount of the bail, the amount of time the defendant and the indemnitor (the person signing the bail bond contract) have lived in the area and the need of a payment plan. Basically, the bondsman is determining risk. The higher the risk, the more likely the need for collateral.

Collateral, when required, is Read more »

Details of a California Bail Bond Contract

If you find yourself needing to sign a bail bond contract, here is an overview of what is involved in the bail bond contract and what you agree to when you sign on the line. 

A bondsman’s purpose is to provide their client with a secure and legitimate release from the jail in which they are being held, until their scheduled court date.  This enables the defendant to be able to go about their lives in a normal manner until the case against them is resolved.

When signing a bail bond contract with a bail bondsman, you are acknowledging and taking responsibility for certain matters, including:

• Being responsible for the “bail bond premium” the fee of the bail bond rate (10% in the state of California). This money is fully earned by the bondsman when the bond is provided to the jail or court and the defendant is released. That means Read more »

The Difference Between Bail and Bail Bonds

Frequently, people interchange the words “bail” and “bail bonds.” To the judicial system, both words are very important in the process of releasing the accused from jail, but they represent different meanings.

What is Bail?

Upon the arrest of a defendant, most will be allowed to post bail. Bail will be set based on the type of crime and threat to society. The defendant or a guarantor, pays the court in order to secure his or her release. The detainee will be granted release from incarceration once all monies have cleared, or “posted,” with the understanding that they will be legally obligated to attend all future court hearings in which they were involved. Bail money acts as a transaction to ensure security; therefore, in the event that the detainee fails to appear in court at their scheduled time, the court will keep all monies, if necessary. If they do hold their end of the agreement, defendants can receive the returned bail money upon completion of all criminal proceedings, regardless of the outcome.

What is a Bail Bond?

In the event that a defendant cannot or does not want pay the total amount of bail, a bail bondsman can be utilized for a “bail bond”. In exchange for Read more »

I Signed a Bail Bond Contract, What are My Responsibilities?

Many people are quickly put in the position to help a friend, family member or loved one who has been arrested.  With all the anxiety and quick timing wrapped around the bail process, many don’t take the time to actually “process” exactly what they are taking responsibility for when signing for a bail bond.

When signing a bail bond contract, you (the indemnitor) will take on the following  responsibilities:

1. The first and foremost responsibility is that you (the indemnitor), along with the bail agency, will make sure the defendant returns to every one of their court dates without fail.
2. For some reason, should the defendant fail Read more »