When someone is booked for a crime and finds themself in jail, they are forced to wait there until their court date, unless they have the proper funds to post bail. Not everyone has this money on hand, so they must turn to a bail bond company for help.
Before contacting an agent, be sure to have the information necessary to explain to a bail agent the situation. Since most agents are on call all day, you should be able to contact them at any time.
Bonding agents tend to charge around twenty percent of the bail amount plus collateral to ensure the defendant will show up for court.
Once the fee and collateral have been signed over, the bonding agent will pay the bail amount so the person can get out of jail. This can take anywhere from a couple of minutes to a few hours. If the defendant does not appear in court, the bail agent will track them down and bring them back to jail. Not showing up for the court case will result in the loss of whatever was put up for collateral and the requirement that you pay the entire bail amount on your own.
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