One of the most mis-understood aspects of the commercial bail industry is the positive financial impact it has on states and counties across the country.  From the revenue generated by premium taxes paid by the bail bond insurance companies to the other miscellaneous bail bond fees paid by bail agents with each bond, the private sector commercial bail industry generates significant financial resources for the states and counties. 

Additionally, when bail agents fail to get defendants to court (which happens only a small percent of the time), they pay the full amount of the bond to the court.  On the other hand, when a defendant is released through a public sector pretrial service agency and the don’t show up fails for court, they are not held accountable and do not pay anything. 

Lastly, when bail agents get defendants to show up for court, they are saving the county potentially millions of dollars in wasted administrative fees that they would incur when defendants fail to show.  So the next time you hear the argument that commercial bail is bad for your community, think of these important financial facts.  Commercial bail costs the county $0.  Commercial bail generates positive revenue through premium taxes for the states and counties.  Commercial bail gets defendants to court which in turn avoids costly administration costs of having a trial with no defendant.

If you would like to receive copy of this research as well as other resources, visit our bail bond resource library.

Posted by: Eric Granof

See some more bail bond facts:
Bail Bond Fact #1
Bail Bond Fact #2
Bail Bond Fact #3
Bail Bond Fact #4
Bail Bond Fact #5
Bail Bond Fact #6
Bail Bond Fact #7
Bail Bond Fact #8

Read more bail bond industry news: ExpertBail Agent Standing Out: A Conversation with Stephen Owens

Learn more about the bail bond process: Bail Bond Questions and Answers

Read one of ExpertBail’s bail bond blog posts: More Selfie Incrimination: Having a Blast on Twitter