Bail Bondsman: Understanding the Different Classifications and Their Purposes

Bail bonds help individuals daily, giving them a way out by hiring a bail bonds agency like Utah Bail Bonds to pay the bail set by the court and reunite with their families before their trial. But not all bail bonds — and, by extension, bail bond agents — are the same. Here’s what you need to know about the classifications of bail bondsmen.

A bail bondsman may be hired directly by the defendant, but most often, bail bonds with a bonds agency are secured by a cosigner who has put up collateral. The bail bond agency takes on the full bail amount for a 10 to 20 percent fee, paid by either the defendant or cosigner. Once the bail amount is paid, the defendant is released with the understanding that they must appear in court.

If the defendant jumps bail, the bond agent is responsible for recovering fugitive defendants. The agency will typically offer additional help and support to help discourage bail jumping and keep the defendant on track during their trial process.

The surety bail bondsman is the most common type, sometimes called a general bondsman. This type of bondsman is licensed to work at the state level to manage bail bonds for defendants accused of various crimes, from driving citations to capital murder.

State legislatures and jurisdictions determine how a surety bondsman operates. For instance, if a defendant jumps bail in Utah, the bond agent has a 6-month grace period to respond and bring the defendant back to court before the court forfeits the bond.

Federal bondsmen are more nuanced and handle bail bonds issued to federal criminal defendants. In addition to guaranteeing the defendant's appearance in court, they ensure the defendant will comply with all pretrial conditions, including, but not limited to, drug tests, business action restrictions, and travel limitations.

Many bond agencies do not issue federal bonds due to their high-risk nature. If the defendant fails any of the conditions of the federal bail bond, the court may forfeit the entire bail amount. 

An immigration bondsman handles federal bonds specifically for cases where the defendant is an immigrant trying to secure release from a detention facility, such as the Custody Immigration and Customs Enforcement. 

These bonds are considered higher-risk bonds because immigrants tend to have fewer community ties and are more likely to jump bail for fear of facing imprisonment or deportation. While fewer bail bond agents are willing to take on the higher financial risks, those that do tend to compensate for them by charging a higher fee, which may be five percent more than that of comparable surety bonds.

Understanding which type of bail bondsman can help you in your given situation is the first step in securing release. If you are looking for a surety bail bondsman in Utah, Utah Bail Bonds has your back.