Top 7 Questions You Must Ask a Bail Bond Company Before You Engage Their Services

A bail bond company may be your last option in times of financial distress but they tend to be more reliable. It is important that you have a very good source of judgment before you hire a bail bond company for its services.  Here are some questions you should ask a Bail bond company before engaging in their services;

Is your bail bond company listed with the BBB?

According to Washington Post, the most important question you should ask a bail bond is whether it is listed with the Better Business Bureau(BBB). Fortunately, most reputable bond companies are listed with the BBB. The BBB is an organization specifically set up to protect consumers’ rights. There are some companies that were initially listed in the BBB or any other regulatory body but has since been removed for a number of reasons. When you search for the status of a bond bail company, you need to confirm their current status and not just whether they are listed and registered.

Is your bail bond company licensed?

This is an obvious question that must be asked at the beginning of the hiring process. The authentic bail bond service providers are normally licensed by regional and national government regulated establishments and they must provide evidence of such license. Any bail bond company that fails to confirm its license must be cut off immediately because it is risky doing business with such organizations. It is even possible to check the license status of bail bond companies in your country. Some companies might have had their licenses suspended or even revoked as a result of dubious financial transactions. Make sure you verify all references they provide in the course of hiring them.

What are your ratings and where can I find out more information about you?

Some Bail bond companies try to hide certain public information from consumers for whatever reasons known to them. The BBB is one of the places where consumers can find out about the ratings of a bail bond company and all other information such as registration year and some customer reviews. You can also do some research about complaints about any bail bond company. If a company claims it has an AAA rating then you need to call in and confirm at the Better Business Bureau, some of these Bail bond companies don’t even have B+ ratings. Any bail bond company with a rating of BB- is considered to be very low and speculative, therefore you should not go lower than BB+ rating when you are hiring a bond bail company.

What are the percentages you charge on your bail bond services and why?

Reputable bail bond companies normally charge 10% or less on their bail bond services. You should be wary of a company that offers ridiculously low discounted bail charges, the best bail bond companies will not reduce their service percentages to 5% or less, just to get customers. Some bail bond companies will impose low percentages only to include hidden fees and charges in their services.

Will you explain to me the bail bond service?

If you ask an agent of a bail bond service to explain the procedures for bail bond services, and they answered Yes! Then the company should be a credible one. Most beginners to bail bond do not understand the nitty-gritty of such services, hence educating customers on how bail bond works will help them make informed decisions. The more a customer understands about bail bonds, the smoother and quicker the process of securing a bail bond service.

An ideal bond company should explain certain procedures to you. For instance, they should let you know what will happen if a defendant skips the court proceedings, or if it is possible for a defendant to leave the area without getting permission from the court or jail.

How fast can you get my friend, or family out of jail?

When a bail bond company gives you a definite time frame for which a defendant will be bailed out of jail, can be trusted, and you should probably close the deal with such a company. A bad bail bond company will never give you a definitive response as regards the time frame for which the defendant will be bailed out of jail. Even though a bondman may not control the jail system but they should have absolute control over when they will fulfill their portion of the release procedure.

It should be noted that jails will always operate on a safety-first basis, and most bail completion procedures can be very slow, depending on the type of case and how quickly the defendant can fulfill his or her bail conditions. An experienced bondsman should be aware of the processing times for different jail systems.

What do you accept as collateral?

Just like most loans, bail bonds also require collateral. The collateral bail bond agencies do accept will vary from one agency to the other. Depending on the amount involved in the bail bond, these agencies may accept collaterals such as real estate properties, Credit cards, automobiles, jewelry, stocks, and bonds. Do not accept to do business with a bail bond agency that wants your bank information as collateral, you might end up trading a much more valuable financial asset. You can check this website for more information on how to work out the ideal collateral for a bail bond service.

Conclusion

Just because you are desperate to get someone out of jail does not mean you should be in a hurry to hire a bail bond company. If you rush into the selection process, you may end up complicating issues for yourself and at the end, you may lose your precious collateral. You need to seek special guidance from a professional who understands how bail bonds work, and how you can get the best deal from it. You should also speak to your acquaintances, work colleagues and family members for recommendations on trusted and tested bail bond service providers they have used before.