Whenever you are placed under arrest, you have the right to post bail to get yourself out of jail. This fee is typically fully refundable, so long as you show up for your appointed date in court. However, depending on the circumstances of your arrest, the amount required for bail could be more than the amount of money you have available, which could make it necessary to work with bondsmen to secure bail bonds in Angleton, TX.
There are a lot of misconceptions out there about bails and bail bondsmen. Here are just a few of them—and the truths behind them:
- MYTH: You must pay your bondsman in cash: When you work with bondsmen, they provide you with the cash you need to post bail. In return, you pay a portion of that bail as a non-refundable fee. Typically this is between 10 and 20 percent of the total bail amount. You can use cash to pay this fee if you like, but you can also use bank deposits, credit cards, debit cards and more. You can even put up collateral to help make the payment.
- MYTH: Bondsmen will help you negotiate lower bail: The bondsman’s job is solely to help you get out of jail. The only person who will adjust your bail amount is the judge, and the only person who will argue on your behalf to get that amount lowered is an attorney. Bondsmen are more than happy to work with you to get out of jail, but negotiating the amount is not within their scope of duty.
- MYTH: Anything you pay to a bondsman will eventually be refunded: While the full amount of bail can be refunded if you show up to court, the amount that you pay to a bondsman is non-refundable. You’ll only get refunded for the amount you paid without the assistance of the bondsman, and the bondsman will also get refunded for the portion of bail they put up to help get you out of jail.
- MYTH: After you have paid the bondsman fee, there are no additional fees: This is not necessarily true. If you do show up to your assigned court dates, then yes, you will no longer owe any additional money to the bondsman. If, however, you decide not to show up to your court dates, the court will keep the bail money that would have been refunded to the bondsman, and the bondsman will then likely seek the help of a collections agency to get that money, either from you or a co-signer. This situation is called “defaulting” on your bail, and you have to pay the bondsman back or face other legal difficulties.
If you ever have any questions at all about bonds or what bondsmen do, contact us at Brazoria County Bail Bonds, your source for bail bonds in Angleton, TX. We are pleased to provide you with more information about our services and to help you get out of jail should you ever need our assistance.