If you, your loved one, or someone you know has ever been charged with a crime, then you are pretty familiar with the term bail. However, not many people understand the steps involved in paying the bail amount, especially if you don’t have the said amount. This is where Santa Angela Bail Bonds steps in to help.
But, before we can discuss how bail bonds work, let’s first take a look at the definition of a few terms.
What is Bail?
This is a court-set amount of money that acts as insurance between the defendant and the court. The court gives defendants the option to pay their bail amount in cash; however, few people can do so.
Since most bail amounts have a high set amount, a majority of defendants cannot post bail themselves. In such cases, defendants end up seeking help from a bail bondsman who posts the bail bond on their behalf.
What is a Bail Bond?
This is a court payment that a bail bondsman or company makes on behalf of the defendant. The common types of bail bonds:
A Civil bond: It is used in civil cases, and this amount guarantees that your debt is paid, including the costs and interests.
Criminal bond: It is used to pay for criminal cases. It guarantees that a defendant appears for trial when the court calls them. It also guarantees payment for any penalties or fines that the court decides against the defendant.
How Does Bail Bond Work?
The first step of every bail bond process starts when the judges set a defendant’s bail. If the defendant cannot pay their bail amount themselves, they can then seek help from a bail bondsman or company in the form of a bail bond.
However, for the bail bondsman to post a bail bond, you as the defendant will have to pay the bail bonds company 10% of your bail amount.
The bail bonds company then secures the remaining amount of your bail amount in terms of collateral. If you do not have enough collateral, the bail bonds company will seek out your friends and relatives to assist in covering your bail.
Some bail bondsmen may require defendants to make additional cash payments and have total collateral before posting a bail bond.
Once the bail bond is posted, the defendant must ensure that they appear in court for the case. But, what happens if the defendant fails to appear:
- The bail bondsman forfeits the bail bond, and the court will require the remaining 90% of the defendant’s bail to be paid. For this, the bail bondsman will use your collateral- stocks, jewelry, or house- to pay the remaining bail amount to the court.
But, if the defendant appears for court, the bail bond will be dissolved once the case is concluded. Your collateral will also be returned. But, the bail bondsman will keep the 10% fee you gave them as profit.
How Do You Get a Bail Bond?
Now that you know how a bail bond works, the next step is knowing how to get a bail bond. It’s important to note that bail bonds are the most hazardous types of bonds to write, primarily because if a defendant fails to appear in court, the bail bonds company will have to pay the total penalty.
This is why most bail bond agents will seek out collateral, which will ensure they don’t pay that amount themselves. So, if you need a bail bond, it’s important to remember that the bond company will require 10% of the bail amount and collateral before posting your bail.
Also, before they can release your bail bond, the bail agent will set certain conditions. These set conditions must be met for you to comply with the bail bond agreement. The agreements will be stated in the form of paperwork that you must fill out once an agreement is reached.
Apart from how you will make payments, the agreement will also include several provisions stating that you must show up for all your court proceedings.
Remember, a bail bondsman isn’t obligated to help you or your loved one out of jail; they are, however, taking the risk to help you.
So, if you or your loved one ever needs help paying your bail amount, you can always contact a bail bonds agent. But, ensure that you adhere to the court proceedings as you wouldn’t want the amount you paid not to mean anything.
