For online bail bonds, the cosignor and defendant provide their full name, date of birth, address, phone number, email and SSN to the bondsman. Online bail can be paid via debit card, credit card or sometimes e-transfer.
Do you know how to post bail bonds online? Most people don’t know you can post online bail bonds. This is a new method of paying a defendant’s bail bond premium without being there physically.
Online bail bonds don’t apply to all jails because some are not equipped to accept online payments. Besides, before you apply to pay for bail online, you must understand that not all criminal charges allow online bail. However, all criminal charges are eligible for bail.
This article will give you a detailed explanation of how online bail bonds work.
What Charges Can You Use Online bail bonds for?
Most criminal charges allow you to use an online service to pay bail. The online service involves hiring a bail bondsman online to post bail on your behalf.
For criminal offenses such as traffic arrests and arrest warrants, you can use the online service since the bail amount isn’t factored in paying bail. Some states don’t allow online bail bonds, so ensure that you confirm before you start the process of paying a bond online.
Hiring an online bail bondsman
The first process of paying online bail is to find and hire a bail bondsman. The work of a bail bondsman is to start the bail bond application and follow the process of paying bail to the end. This process can be time-consuming, hence the need for bail bondsmen.
You can use a bail bond company or a single agent as a bondsman. However, a company works better because it ensures that it has licensed agents conversant with the online bonding process. Also, a company offers 24/7 services to its customers, which is an added advantage.
For instance, if you are arrested at bad hours and want to post bail, it can be frustrating to begin the process. However, companies will come in to help their clients. A good company can bail you out at any time, 7 days a week.
A bail bondsman should be able to take risks associated with bail. Some risks, such as the defendant missing court, can backfire on the bondsman, which leads to them paying a fine.
The work of a bondsman includes taking on the defendant’s liability by paying a non-refundable fee for them to appear in court. Other than that, they ensure that the defendant is released from custody. The fee charged by the bondsmen differs from one bail bond company to another.
Get The Right Payment Plan for Bail
If you hire a bail bondsman, a bail payment plan is necessary if you don’t have all the money. Since the bond amount is charged depending on the crime, it can be expensive, even for petty crimes. A good bail bondsman will work with you to develop a payment plan.
Charges paid to the bondsman for his services should not be more than 10% of the total bail cost. Some agents have the habit of charging more money from their clients. It is better to research before you pick the bondsman.
Call a family member to make a down payment for bail if you’re in custody. Down payment for bail bonds can be made using credit cards, bank wire transfers or cash. Every agent has a method of payment suitable to get you out of jail fast.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Bail bonds companies are not allowed to use PayPal for bail payment as it is against their policy.
As stated earlier, an online bail process is not easy and may take some time. Thus, you need to hire a professional bondsman to ensure the process runs smoothly. But, what do you need for this new process?
Before you approach any company to apply for a surety bond for your friend or loved one, ensure that you know at least some of these things:
The location or city where the defendant was arrested
The name of the jail where they may be incarcerated. It’s ok if you don’t know this, the bondsman will be able to find out for you.
The amount of the bond and the charges. Again, if you don’t know, the bondsman can find out.
Provide the agent with the defendant’s full name and date of birth
A booking number and date they were arrested.
Ensure that they provide you with information related to charges, such as the mode of payment and if they accept cash or credit card payment.
Remember, you need to know the charges your defendant is being accused of. Almost every criminal charge can be assigned bail, but you cannot pay all through online bail bonds. You cannot pay federal and immigration bonds online. You have to visit the state or federal office to pay those types of bail.
Visiting a bail bond office requires providing your information, including an official ID, phone number, bank statements, and contact address.
Online Bail Bonds and How They Work
A bail bondsman is like a lawyer, you should provide them with the correct information regarding your arrest and be transparent about the amount of money you must pay. If you lie to the bail bond company, the bail bond process can be tedious because they need to have the correct information to locate your case file.
After the bail bond company goes through your official documents, they now offer the assistance of posting your bail bond. The defendant can pay the bail bond, or a family member can pay. If not possible, the bail bond company will pay on your behalf, and then you’ll pay them later.
The local bail company fills in the online application, which does not require them to go to where the defendant is in custody. They do this online in their bail bonds office and send you the necessary forms to fill where needed, and once you complete it, resend them. Also, the company agent can contact the defendant’s family members and inform them of their whereabouts.
Once the online bail bond is posted, the defendant is free to return home. You can also request the bail bondsman to pick up the defendant if they are in jail far from you. The process takes less than a few hours but could take up to a few days.
Conclusion
Sometimes trouble comes your way when you least expect it; and, you get arrested for a felony or misdemenor. Online bail bonds have come to a great length to help people detained, no matter the details of their arrests.
Paying a bail bond online is a fast and efficient way top get a friend or loved one released from jail. Using a professional bondsman, within a short period of time, the defendant in custody is free. So when you pay bail online, you save yourself the time required to visit the bail bond office to pay bail bonds. This bail bond has become common as more states are adopting this method.
About the author
Nick Judelson is a veteran bail bondsman who helps to show cosignors and defendants how to calculate bail and how bail bonds work throughout the United States.
