What You Need to Understand About Bail Bonds

At some point in his or her life, the chances are that a person may get into a situation and need to be bailed out of jail. The person, agent or agency who usually does this is referred to as a bail bondsman. The bailing agent puts up a certain fee that will guarantee to the court that the person released by the payment of bail will show up for his or her court date. If the person fails to appear, he or she is said to have jumped bail and the bond is forfeited. At such times, the bail bonding agent usually hires a bounty hunter to track down the bail jumper.

Bail bonding agencies are in nearly every city in the United States, and in some portion of the Philippines. For those in the southern California area, there are posting bail in san diego agencies available. Before securing a san diego bail bonds agent, however, there are some things you should know about the bail bonding business that will assist you in finding the right agent or agency.

A bail bondsman or agency generally require you to make a down payment on the bail that has been set for you by the court. Most times, this fee is 10 percent of the bail. The bail bonding agency will cover the other 90 percent. You will not get any money back that you paid, nor is the fee tax deductible.



If you should decide or be forced to use your home to secure the bailing fee, and you fail to appear in court on the date set, you stand to lose your home. Your real estate could be foreclosed upon and the proceeds used to pay for your bail.

You need to understand the different terms as it applies to needing help to get out of jail. There are cash bonds, surety bonds and bail bonds. A cash bond constitutes paying the full amount of whatever the bail is plus the sheriff's fee. A surety bond is when an agreement has been set up between you and the bondsman. The amount of the bond is backed by an insurance company through the mutual signed agreement of the person and the bonds agency. A bail bond is when a certain percentage has been paid to the bonding agency who will then put up the rest of the money, as previously noted.

In southern California, you can hire the services of a vista bail bondsman to ensure you get out of jail. Just keep in mind that you must not forfeit your vista ca bail bonds, or you will run the risk of being hunted down by a bounty hunter. For more information, visit the yellow pages or you can visit the website of Watkins Bail Bonds.