How to Become a Bail Agent
There are thousands of bail agents currently working in the United States. There are some agents in high population cities that make hundreds of thousands of dollars a year and there are other agents in those same large towns that won’t make ten thousand dollars a year. The average bail agent across the country probably makes between $25,000 and $50,000 dollars a year. The bail profession is probably more about who you know (or rather who knows you) than what you know. To be successful, you must be known by a very large number and extremely diverse group of the local population.
Getting Started:
Before you worry about getting a license, take some time and evaluate your market. Talk to the Sheriff of your county and see what the requirements are to approve bail agents. Talk to the Police officers and Sheriff’s deputies you know and see what they think of the idea of getting into the bail industry. If you do not know the Sheriff or police in your area, this may not be a good business for you. While it is certainly not required, knowing the local law enforcement community certainly helps with being a bail agent. Other things to consider: How many criminal defense attorneys do you know? Do you know the prosecuting attorneys in your area and the Judges? These are the key audiences the bail agent needs to interact with and without them, you will be starting with a severe deficit.
Another important question is how much competition for bail bonds is there in your area. Are you in a high population center with scores of companies already there? Are you in a small county with only one company? Sometimes that one company will be harder to compete against than the high population center. If that company has been there a long time and has a long-established record of fair dealings in the community and are well respected by the law enforcement and judicial community, it will be very hard to compete with them.
The other question you need to answer is how many people go to jail and of those, how many actually post bail as opposed to being released on their own recognizance or some other court release program. Research the release mechanisms in your jurisdiction. There are four states that do not have commercial bail; they are Illinois, Kentucky, Oregon and Wisconsin. There are also other states where that have very little commercial bail, such as Maine and Nebraska, and other states that are fighting bail reform as a whole.
How to become licensed:
In most states, bail agents are licensed by the Department of Insurance. There may not be a license specific for bail agents; in many states, the license required is for property and casualty insurance. Contact the licensing division of the Department of Insurance of your state to inquire what type of license you need. If your state does not have a specific bail agent’s license, tell department staff you need a license to post surety bonds.
Inquire as to the education requirements for licensure and where education can be obtained, as well as any tests required. Ask the Department of Insurance to send you all the forms needed to apply for such a license or where to find them online, and how much money you will need to send in with the application. Also inquire if you need to submit fingerprints; pictures or anything else for licensure.
In the state of Arkansas, a Bail Bond Board regulates bail agents and one would need to contact that board rather than the Department of Insurance. In a few states if you have enough money, you may not need an insurance company to back you. You can put the money up with the court yourself if the court qualifies you to do so.
LINK TO LIST OF STATE INSURANCE DEPARTMENTS
Why do I need an insurance company?
Unless you are independently wealthy and live in one of the states that allow personal surety, sometimes called pocket bondsmen or property bail agents, you must be appointed by an insurance company to write bail bonds.
What does an insurance company do for me?
When you consider what a bail agent does, you will understand where the insurance company fit in. If the bail agents’ job is to return the defendant to court, how does an out-of-state insurance company help? If you are not wealthy enough to write on your own assets, the assets of an insurance company will be needed to guarantee bonds.
When an insurance agent sells an auto policy, the agent gets a small commission, and if the auto is damaged, it’s not the agent’s problem. The insurance company steps in and settles with the policyholder directly. When a bail agent writes a bail bond, the agent gets the money and pays the company a premium. If and when the defendant fails appear for court, the bail agent must recover the defendant; if they cannot recover the defendant, the bail agent pays the bond to the court. The purpose of the insurance company is to step in if the bail agent cannot pay the court. The bail insurance company covers the bail agent's liability if the bail agent cannot pay directly by cleaning up the outstanding liability accrued by the bail agent.
What determines how much I have to pay the insurer?
The premium rate a bail agent pays an insurance company is determined by the financial status of the bail agent. The financial stability, credit rating, community ties, experience level and other factors determine the bail agent’s rate. The other determining factor is the amount of money placed into a collateral account or build-up-fund (BUF) by the bail agent. A BUF account is money that belongs to the bail agent, held by the insurance company in trust, which guarantees the company that the agent will fulfill the obligations of their contract. A BUF account is money that belongs to the bail agent, held by the insurance company in trust, which guarantees the insurance company that the bail agent will fulfill the obligations of their contract.
The BUF account is the bail agent's money and the insurance company must be accountable for it. If the bail agent takes care of their business obligations to the insurance company, the BUF account can turn into a nice retirement account. If the bail agent fails to meet their business obligations, the BUF is used to pay judgments, recovery fees and legal fees. BUF accounts should always be held in an FDIC insured account with the bail agent receiving monthly statements showing how much is in the account at any given time. It is the best policy for the insurance company to hold your BUF.
What else should I do?
When you decide on the insurance company you want to represent you, you may have to work directly with their general agent (GA). Many companies use GA's as a buffer between the insurance company and the bail agent for liability purposes. They also use GA's because of the expense they would incur to hire the personnel necessary to train and supervise agents. Some insurance companies have one national GA while other companies use large regional GA's.
Once you have found the insurance company and GA you want to work with, take your time and do your research. Review the insurance company's contract with you as a bail agent and ask your attorney to review it as well. In any contract, you assume specific obligations and you should fully understand what you are getting involved in.
Ask for a referral list of the GA's and insurance company's bail agents and call them to inquire how well they like the GA and insurance company. If you learn of any problems, inquire further with those individuals who may have been involved.
It is always best to have all of the facts at hand before proceeding.