What is a Bail Bond?

This question comes from Yahoo! Answers.  This is where you will find that we often answer bail related questions.

Question:  What is a bail bond? 

Answer:  Most simply put: a bail bond is a written and legally binding contract securing bail for a person that was arrested. The contract signer, also known as the “Indemnitor,” is responsible for the fee stipulated in the contract.  Most often the fee is 10% of the full bail amount.  The person signing is also ensuring the defendant’s appearance in court.

Bail is Read more »

Why Bail Bonds Work

Ask The Bondsman answers questions regarding bail bonds. Here’s a question we received this week:

Question: I’m reading in various states there is some question about bail bonds as a whole. Would the states really do away with bondsmen? If the state takes the 10% and the person doesn’t show up, then what??

Answer: Yes, some states are considering moving bail to the public sector. I find that particularly interesting because of the move to privatize so many industries over the years. Let’s face it, when an individual’s livelihood is on the line, the job usually gets done right.

Beyond jobs, we need to look at public safety as well as public revenues. The bail industry works beautifully. There is one simple answer Read more »

Does a Bondsman Keep His Fee if the Person Remains in Custody?

Another question from Yahoo! Answers.  This is another one of our answers voted “Best Answer” by Yahoo voters.

Question: I contracted with a bail bondsman, but the person was in custody the whole time again.  Do I still have to pay?

Answer: Once the defendant has been released from custody, the bail bondsman has earned their fee by California bail law. Therefore, if they were released and arrested again or they were released and found guilty in court, you still pay.

If the person was NOT released at all, Read more »

How Does a Bail Bondsman and a Bounty Hunter Make Money?

Today’s Ask the Bondsman question comes from Yahoo! Answers, where we frequently answer bail related questions. Our answer was choosen by readers as the best answer to the question.

Question: How do bail bondsmen and bounty hunters make money?

Answer: A bail bondsman makes money from the “premium” which is legally mandated in most states at 10% of the total bail amount. That is a fee for providing bail services.  Given the defendant goes to court, the bondsman pockets that amount.  Of course, profit is determined after operating costs like insurance, advertising, office space, payroll, etc.

A bounty hunter, better known as a ”fugitive recovery agent,” operates Read more »

Frequently Asked Questions About Bail Bonds

Most people are not familiar with the bail bond process. Often, when someone receives that unexpected call about a loved one or friend being held in jail, several questions may arise. Listed below are some of the more frequently asked questions along with very brief answers when it comes to posting bail for a defendant.

1: What is Bail?

Bail is set by a judge and is intended to guarantee that the defendant will return to court as required.

2: What is a Bond?

When a defendant cannot afford to pay the entire bail amount, they can call on the help of a bail bondsman. The bail bonds company will post a paper “bond” with the court for the full amount of the bail. The bail bond is a contract which states that the defendant will show up for court..

3: Is a Bondsman a Bounty Hunter?

While a bondsman can pick up a defendant and return him or her to jail, a bondsman is not the same as a bail recovery agent (commonly known as a “bounty hunter”).

4: Who is allowed to post the bail for a defendant?

Anyone. However, 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 »

Is A Bail Bond A Loan?

Question: So let me see if I understand how bail works: as a bail bonds company what you do is you provide the cash and they give money toward that bail which is sort of like what interest on a loan?

Answer: No, it’s not a loan. It is actually a bond. It is a piece of paper and the amount paid to the bondsman is a fee. We collect the bail fee and that’s how we make money. However, Read more »

Listen to Bail Bonds Information

A year or so ago, Sherry Borzo of dsmBUZZ interviewed me about bail bonds. Take a listen:

It’s about a half hour. So, I’m adding are some of the excerpts to Ask the Bondsman including:

• A brief overview as to what it is bail bondsmen do. (Published 7/25/2010)
• Who 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 »

How Do You Qualify For Bail Bonds Financing?

It used to be that bail bonds were paid for in advance of a defendant being released from jail on bond. While the best way to obtain a bail bond is by paying your 10% to the bondsman up-front, financing bail bonds has become more and more commonplace.

As in so many financing situations, buyer beware. If you finance a bail bond, you may simply be getting a loan – a loan that comes with a high financing price tag. If you do need to finance a bond, you will want to look for a bondsman who does not charge interest or additional fees for this service. Check the fine print.

With our bail bonds company, in order to qualify for a bail bond payment plan you’ll need to have good credit, and/or own a home. You  will also need Read more »