04/03/2017
A couple of months ago I posted about what the bail bond industry does right... Now I'm going to tell you where the industry is getting it wrong. I feel the number one area our industry is failing at, is lack of financial responsibility on the part of General Agents.
Did you know....It’s possible to post a huge bond for someone with very little money or assets to your name?
Did you know...There are absolutely no regulations on what a bond agent charges? You can post a $100,000 bond and only receive a hundred bucks or less from the defendant?
(Quick bail fact for those that don't know: General Agents are the ones who actually pledge to pay the bail money to the court if the defendant fails to appear. All bail bond agents work for a General Agent.)
So here's the problem: Currently the qualifications to be a General Agent are set very loosely by the state; presumably, because most court circuits also have additional mandatory requirements. However, there are still many counties throughout Missouri that don't. As a result, the only actual money you have to be in possession of is the $10,000 required by the state of Missouri.
All that means is with $10,000 and two years of being a licensed bail bond agent, you can be a General Agent and have other bail bond agents under you. What most people don't understand is with only $10,000 to your name, you are allowed to post a million dollar bond.
Now, you've made a legal promise to pay the court one million dollars if the defendant doesn't appear in court, except, of course, you only have $10,000 to your name. This is absolutely no different than writing a check for a million dollars, knowing you only have $10,000 in your checking account. In the State of Missouri, if you do that with your personal checkbook, it’s a felony.
Fortunately, the 25th Circuit has chosen to tighten things up and require the General Agents who operate here to have some actual financial backing. It’s not perfect, but it’s definitely a step in the right direction.
Why is that important? Because we as agents have a responsibility to the courts. In order to fulfill that responsibility, we have to have the means to back the bonds we write. We also have to have resources to recover a fugitive when one doesn’t appear in court.
For example, if you bond someone out of jail on a $100,000 dollar bond and only take 100.00 down and that person absconds to the state of Washington, the money you accepted down won't even pay for the gas it would take to drive there. How in the world could you hope to make a successful fugitive recovery with only a 100.00 to work with? The answer is of course, you can’t.
That’s why these changes are coming to the industry and why most reputable bondsmen are glad they are.
