3 Factors To Consider When Choosing A Bail Bonds Company
Bail bond companies are businesses that help individuals pay their bail amounts for a fee. For example, if a judge sets your bail at $20,000, you may not have that kind of money lying around your home or bank account. As a result, the only way to come up with such a sum is by using a bail bonds service.
Hence, a bail bond company will ask you to deposit a given percentage of the bail amount, and then they will pay the entire bail amount.
Nonetheless, bail bond companies come a dime a dozen. Hence, you must be diligent when choosing a reliable bail bond company. Thus, here are three factors to consider when choosing a bail bond company.
1. Operation Hours
In most cases, you never know when you might get arrested and need to post bail. For instance, if a friend or loved one gets arrested at night, you may need to bail them out on the same night instead of having them spend a night in jail.
As a result, it would help to consider using a bail bonds company that operates at night. Besides, most bail bond agents operate during regular business hours. Hence, they may not be available at night.
Thus, if you need to post bail in the middle of the night, a 24/7 bail bond company is your best bet.
2. Payment Options
As previously mentioned, you must deposit a percentage of the bail money with the bail bonds company before they can cover the bail. But what if you don't have the amount required by the bail bonds company?
Some bail bond agents and companies often accept collateral as a deposit. For instance, if you need to deposit $2000 with the bail bonds company but you don't have it, you can post your car as collateral. Thus, the bail bondsman will hold your car's pink slip until you repay the $2000.
Hence, when looking for a reliable bail bonds company, consider whether they accept collateral if you don't have enough money.
3. Fees Levied
Every state imposes a cap on the maximum fee bail bonds companies can charge. Depending on your state, the average fees levied on a bail bond range between 5% and 20% of the bail amount.
However, different bail bond companies compete by lowering the percentage fees to attract more clients. For instance, if the fee cap in your state is at 10% of the bail amount, some bail bond companies might charge 8-9%.
Hence, when looking for a bail bonds company, compare and contrast the fees charged by different companies. Besides, the lower the fees charged, the more money you get to save on the bail bond.
For more information on bail bonds, contact a professional near you.