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Frequently Asked Questions About Bail Bonds
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What is Bail?
A bail bond is an insurance contract with a surety company that promises the
court that a defendant will make all required court appearances.
In exchange for the defendant's release, the promise is that if a defendant
fails to appear in court without good cause, and is not located within a certain
timeframe, the full of amount of the bond becomes due to the court.
In such a case, the indemnitor (the person signing to have the defendant
released) has previously promised through their signatures, to be financially
liable for the defendant should they fail to appear.
This is why if as an indemnitor you have reason to believe that the defendant
may not appear in court as ordered, you should contact Ace Baron Bail Bonds
immediately, without delay, day or night.
Another bail bond company offers to post bail for 5% or even 3%. Why shouldn't I
go with them?
The California Department of Insurance (DOI) sets the standards and regulates
the bail industry. That standard is that bail is 10% or 8% of the full amount of
the bond, depending on the circumstances. A bail bond company offering less is
usually speaking of the amount down to post a bond and financing of the
remaining balance. This can be acceptable.
A bail bond company doing business only for less than the amount established by
the DOI should raise a lot red flags, to say nothing of skirting the law.
Our question to you is: If a bail bond company is willing to break the law just
to get your business, are you so sure that they won't be willing to break the
law in their dealings with you or the defendant?
Working with Ace Baron Bail Bonds, you've got one less thing to worry about. You
are going to be treated honestly and fairly. The choice is clear.
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How much is bail?
The premium to post bail is 10% of the full amount of the bond. In certain
circumstances, that amount can be 8%.
Example: If someone is arrested on a DUI charge and bail is set at $10,000, the
amount to post a bond would be 10%, or $1000.
Can I post bail directly with jail or courts?
Yes. This is known as cash bond. If bail is $10,000, you may post the full
$10,000 with the courts, bypassing any need for the service of a bail agent. As
long as the defendant meets their obligations to the court, the money will be
returned to you once the case is over (usually several months later), possibly
less any fees.
Or, you can post 10% with Ace Baron Bail Bonds and keep the difference, perhaps
using the extra funds to seek private counsel for the defendant.
Is the bail premium refundable?
No. Once the premium has been paid, the bond posted, and the defendant released,
it is fully earned. It doesn't matter if, after release from custody, the
charges are immediately dropped, or if the defendant is later found "not guilty"
in a court of law.
How do I qualify for 8% premium?
Ace Baron Bail Bonds is permitted to offer bail at 8% premium for the following
persons:
- A defendant or indemnitor who can demonstrate that they have retained private
legal counsel (before bail is posted).
- Active members of the military.
- Members of AARP.
- Union members.
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Do I always need collateral?
Whether or not collateral is required is judged on a case-by-case basis. There
can be any number of factors: ties to the community; nature of the charges, bail
amount; past arrest history; flight risk, etc., that will factor in to
determining whether or not collateral will be required.
Frequently, your collateral is just your signature.
What is acceptable collateral?
Collateral can be many things. We will accept houses, cash, real estate, stocks
and bonds, vehicles, precious metals, bank accounts, among other items.
By law, collateral is always held in a trust account; it is never commingled
with other funds.
How soon can I get my collateral returned?
After all fees have been paid, the court case is over, and we've received
proof---directly from the courts---that the defendant's case is done, we are
required by law to return collateral within 30 days.
At Ace Baron Bail Bonds, once all of these conditions are fulfilled, we do our
best to return your collateral immediately.
Once bail is posted, how long does it take for a defendant to be released?
The first thing to keep in mind is that release times are up to the jail and
will vary. These times are not up to Ace Baron Bail Bonds or any bail agency.
As a broad rule, defendants held at a local jail can be released within an hour
or so once the bond has been posted.
Defendants held at county jail can be released within 4 to 6 hours; we've seen
as long as 11 hours.
In any case, defendants will need to meet with us within the first 24 hours of
their release to go over paperwork, take photos, etc.
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Which areas do you service?
Ace Baron Bail Bonds is based in Orange County. We also provide bail bonds to
all of Los Angeles, San Diego, San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. Through
our surety company, we can provide bail anywhere in California and nationwide.
Do you offer payment plans?
Depending on the amount of the bond and other factors, Ace Baron Bail Bonds can
arrange a reasonable payment plan to make your life easier. Our surety company
generally requests 5% down, with non-interest financing of the remaining
balance.
How do I get started?
Easy. Fill out the contact information or call us anytime.
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