How To Be A Bail Bondsman

A bail bondsman serves as an insurance company's agent by issuing bonds for imprisoned people. These personnel are also sometimes called bail bond agents. The issued bonds act as bail for an arrested person who is then freed, subject to certain conditions. The arrested person is required to appear at the court or be financially liable for all associated costs. If the arrested person fails to appear at the court, the bond is forfeited and he is arrested again. The bond acts as an insurance to guarantee the appearance of arrested people in court on their court date. The court determines the amount of the bond of the arrested person after considering factors such as the person's background and the nature of crime committed. The person then pays about 10 to 15 percent of that amount to the bail bondsman, who then posts the bond on the person's behalf.  This amount is the commission earned by the bail bondsman.

How To Be A Bail Bondsman
The primary requirement to work as a bail bondsman is to obtain a license. The license may be acquired by fulfilling certain education requirements from the state's governing body. In addition to that, some states may also require certain amount of work experience. Usually, the insurance department of the state handles the licensing.

A typical bail bondsman licensing program may require about 16 hours of pre-license education provided by the insurance company. The topics covered under the program may include bail law and related duties and responsibilities. Additional requirements may include the following:

• A minimum age of twenty one years
• High school diploma or equivalent
• Good reputation and character
• Citizen of the state in which enrolled
• At least one year of state residency

The candidate may follow the following steps in order to become a bail bondsman:

• Contact the respective insurance company to sponsor the candidate for the bail bondsman license
• Pass the exam required for the bail bondsman license
• Obtain required lines of authority for surety and fidelity
• Obtain application to apply for bail bondsman  from the respective insurance company
• Request the respective insurance company to contact the state's Insurance Bureau to register the candidate as a bail bondsman
• Contact the courts the candidate intends to write bonds with, and ask them for the procedure to apply for the court's list of acceptable bail bondsmen

Apart from the stated requirements, there are usually restrictions on who could become a bail bondsman. The following personnel may not be eligible to become bail bondsmen:

• Jailers
• Police Officers
• Prisoners
• Committing Judges
• Municipal Judges
• Sheriffs, deputy sheriffs, or any person with the power to arrest or execute control on federal, state, or municipal prisoners
• Persons convicted of a felony or any other crime involving dishonesty or moral offense
• Any personnel or agent at retail liquor package store

Please note that the above mentioned criteria may differ by varying amounts from one state regulation to another.