How Do Bail Bonds Work in Tennessee?

Need a bail bond? If so, call us today at (901) 523-2245. We offer fast bail bonds with flexible premium payment plans designed to fit your budget.

How Do Bail Bonds Work?

If you’re here asking, “How do bail bonds work?” it’s important to understand why they are used in the first place.

In short, they are used to ensure that defendants abide by the conditions of their release, which includes showing up for court when required.

Why Are Bail Bonds Required?

Bail bonds are useful since they help reduce the strain on the legal system.

Remember that every time someone skips bail, the court is required to track them down, which is a time-consuming process.

How Do Bail Bonds Work in Tennessee?

Are you curious to know how bail bonds work in Tennessee? If so, then you may find the following information useful. First, it’s important to know what bail bonds actually are. We know this can be a complicated topic, especially for those who have never needed help from a bail bonds agency, so that’s why we’re breaking down the fundamentals for you here.

Essentially, bail bonds are a promise that lets the court know you’ll honor your court appointments. With this promise in place, you can get out of jail. Simple, right? We think so too, but there is something important to consider—how you’ll pay your bail amount.

If you want to use a bail bonds agency, most agencies charge 10 percent of whatever the bail amount is. In other words, if your bail amount is 10,000 dollars, your fee to the agency will be 1,000 dollars. This arrangement is called a surety bond, and the advantage is that you don’t have to pay the full bail amount yourself, as you do with a cash bond. Rather, the agency covers the bail amount, expecting you to fulfill your obligations with the court so that the bail amount is refunded. If you don’t fulfill your court date, the bond agency either loses money or requires you to pay them a refund. When it comes to cash bonds, in some cases, if your bail amount is low enough, and you have substantial means, then you can forego a bail bonds agency altogether and pay the amount yourself, although we don’t recommend this.

Cash bonds can be problematic, firstly because you won’t get your money back if you don’t show up for court, and secondly because court costs and fines may be taken from the money you originally gave the court for bail. When you use a bail bonds agency, on the other hand, they typically guarantee the bond with collateral from you, after which they will post the full amount on your behalf.

There are other bonds besides cash and surety bonds, as well, which we want to post here for your reference. 

How Do You Bail Someone Out Of Jail In Tennessee?

Often, when people ask us, “How do bail bonds work?” what they really want to know is how to get someone out of jail.

Fortunately, the answer here is pretty straightforward since there are only two main ways that you can bail someone out of jail.

Bail Bond Process

Bail Out Option One

In most cases, the most effective way to bail someone out of jail is to work with a bail bond agency, which will post bond for you after you sign the bail contract.

Once bail has been posted for you or your loved one, getting out of jail only takes four to 24 hours.

The reason we encourage people to go this route is that bail is often far too expensive for the average person to afford—sometimes well over $10,000.

Not paying bail means sitting in jail, which is something we definitely don’t recommend. In almost every case, the best place to be when facing legal issues is to be safe at home.

Flexible Bail Bond Payment Plans and Your Bail Bond Premium

So what’s the solution if you have a high bail bond? The answer is a flexible bail bond payment plan.

The good news is that, in Tennessee, bail bond premiums (what you pay to a bail bond company to secure their services) are only 10 percent of the total bail amount.

Translation:

If your bail amount is $10,000, you’ll only need to pay a non-refundable amount of $1,000 to your bail bond company to post bond for you.

Flexible Payment Plan

If a $1,000 premium is still too much for you, fortunately, many bail bond companies (us included) work to make things easier for you.

Rather than ask you to pay the full amount of your premium all at once, we offer you a flexible payment plan that is smartly designed to fit your budget.

What your monthly payment ends up as depends on your situation. If you have questions about this, we’d be happy to hear from you and start up a conversation. We’re quite flexible when it comes to your payment plan and can create something that works for your budget.

Given the benefit of having a flexible payment plan, you can see why many people choose to work with bail bond agencies rather than try and produce their full bail amount by themselves.

Bail Someone Out of Jail Option Two

The second option you have when bailing someone out of jail is to pay the full bail amount yourself.

While we don’t have a problem with this route if you can afford it, do keep in mind that failing to show up for court will lead to the money you paid for bail getting confiscated.

If you are going to post cash bail, we urge you to be extra careful and make sure you abide by the conditions of your release so that you can get your money back.

How Long Does It Take to Be Released From Jail?

Getting out of jail usually takes about four hours, but it can take up to 24 hours depending on how severe your charge is, where you were arrested, and whether or not the jail is busy.

We understand that getting out of jail is important, which is why, for our part, we always do our best to make sure you or your loved one get out as soon as possible. This includes calling the jail on your behalf.

One of the advantages of working with us is that we are available 24/7 and can assist you whenever you need.

If you’d like to come to see us at our office, feel free to drop by! We are located at 238 Poplar Ave. Suite 1 Memphis, TN 38103.

Bail Bond Paperwork: What To Expect

Getting arrested isn’t fun, and oftentimes it can be overwhelming, especially if you aren’t familiar with the bail bond process.

One of the areas a lot of people have confusion about is how exactly to get a bail bond….What process they need to go through.

The answer is that you just need to contact us and fill out some paperwork to complete your bail bond contract.

What You Need To Sign For A Bail Bond With Your Bail Bondsman

The main paperwork you need to fill out is for your bail agreement. To sign your agreement, you will need to present us with a valid ID along with proof of residency and proof of income.

Regarding proof of income: You can either give us a tax return, bank statement, or a paycheck stub.

For proof of residency, we require a mortgage statement, utility bill, or a copy of your lease.

Got any questions? Please call us. We’re really flexible and are here to accommodate your needs.

Getting A Bail Bond Online

Getting a bail bond is easy. To begin the process, you just need to contact your preferred bail bond agency or submit a bail bond request online.

Submitting a bail bond request online may be preferable since it is sometimes faster than calling us.

To submit a bail request, go to our Online Bail Request page, fill out the form, and submit your payment. We’ll contact you.

Factors That Determine Bail In Tennessee

Before setting felony bail in Tennessee, there are a few things courts must consider.

They are:

• The nature and severity of the crime
• The defendant’s character and reputation
• The defendant’s mental health
• The risk the defendant poses to others
• The defendant’s criminal history
• The likelihood of conviction
• How likely the defendant is to skip bail
• The defendant’s ties to the community
• The defendant’s financial status

Bail Bond Cost For A Defendant

As mentioned above, the cost of a bail bond premium in Tennessee is 10 percent of the total bail amount. So, if your bail amount is $25,000, your bail bond premium will cost you $2,500.

Note: If a defendant can’t afford to pay their bail bond premium, they have the option to get a cosigner to pay the required amount.

What Forms of Payment Are Acceptable For Bail?

You can pay your bail in the following ways:

(1) Cash, although there may be a limit to how much cash bail you can submit. (2) Cashier’s check. (3) Money order. (4) Credit card. There may be a limit here as well to how much you can spend. (5) Finally, you can get a bail bond with a bail bond company and have them post bond for you.

Bail Bond Premium: Is It Refundable?

No, they are not.

The premium you pay is the fee your bail bond agency charges you in exchange for their services.

How Long Are Bail Bonds Good For?

Bail bonds are good for a year. Once the year is up, you’ll need to pay the premium again to maintain your bail bond.

What If A Person Can’t Afford To Pay Bail To The Court?

If you can’t afford to pay bail, it’s a smart idea to contact your preferred bail bond agency and ask them about getting a flexible bail bond payment plan.

Even with a flexible payment plan, though, some people still won’t be able to afford to pay it.

A single mother surviving on minimum wage, for instance, may not be able to add another expense to her existing bills, however small.

To solve this problem, some bail bond agencies offer clients the option to pay with collateral. We are flexible and accept many forms of collateral, including jewelry and other items of value.

What Happens When Bail Is Denied?

Getting denied bail means you have to wait in jail until your trial concludes.

This obviously presents a problem since trials can last for days, weeks, months, and in certain rare cases, even years.

Fortunately, bail denials are not super common, as courts genuinely don’t have a reason to keep too many people in jail for long periods of time.

Remember that jails cost money and are a burden to taxpayers, so local governments have an incentive to keep their jail populations low or at least at a tolerable level.

With that said, there are times when bail denials are necessary, especially if the defendant is a threat to the community or has a history of skipping bail.

Bail denials are typically reserved for horrible crimes, such as capital murder OR if the person has committed the same crime more than once OR if a person has a history of skipping bail OR if a person has a mental health issue that could bring harm to others.

Note: Committing a serious crime doesn’t necessarily mean that you will be denied bail. Before a denial is made, several considerations are taken into account, including the reason for the crime and how much evidence there is to make a conviction.

In What Cases Can Bail Be Granted?

Barring the situations we’ve just mentioned, bail can be granted for every other type of misdemeanor and felony case.

Conditions of Bail

Getting released on bail isn’t a “get out of jail free” card, so to speak. When getting released on bail, you still need to follow certain conditions.

These include:

• Abiding by travel restrictions
• Doing regular check-ins with a police officer in person or through phone, email, or text.
• Surrendering your weapons to law enforcement
• Undergoing house arrest
• Submitting to 24/7 digital monitoring

Is Bail Constitutional?

Yes.

Bail is mentioned in the U.S. Constitution. The Eighth Amendment states that, “excessive bail shall not be required.”

Here is a List of Different Bail Bonds

Federal bail bonds. Naturally, these are used for federal crimes. The steps to follow are quite different for these types of bonds, one of the big ones being that you can’t go through a bail bonds agent. You have to handle the bond through the court system itself.

Property bail bonds. For these types of bonds, you promise to show up for court by paying with property instead of cash.

Recognizance. Also known as a Personal Recognizance bond, these are a promise made in writing by the defendant assuring the court they’ll make their court dates and avoid illegal activities. Usually, these are not issued for violent crimes or other serious offenses.

Out of all the options presented in this article, the most common bonds are surety bonds. These are popular because Personal Recognizance bonds are sometimes hard to get, and working with a bail bonds agency is cheaper and easier than paying a cash bond. Federal bonds are relatively less common, and property bonds are often not an appealing option for those with family-owned land. Although surety bonds are popular, there are some things to consider when using a bail bonding agency to post a surety bond. For example, if you are unable to pay the agency’s fee, then you will need a co-signer, such as a friend or family member, who can cover it for you. For more information, feel free to call us at (901) 523-2245.

What Happens if You Don’t Show Up For Your Court Appointed Date?

Now that you know what bail bonds are, it’s important to know what can happen if you break your promise to the court and don’t show up for all of your court dates. If this happens, then here is what you can expect.

1. A warrant will be issued for your arrest.
2. The court will consider your original bail bond forfeited, after which your bail bonds agent has to contact you and get you to come to court to get the warrant dropped. This is assuming you have a bail bonds agent who is working with you.
3. If the bail bonds agency can’t find you or make contact, then a bounty hunter may be sent to bring you to court.

What can happen varies slightly from state to state, so if you live in a state other than Tennessee, we would definitely recommend doing your research and contacting a bail bond agency within your local jurisdiction. If you live in Tennessee and are in Shelby County, we’d love to speak with you! We’ve been helping people for 25 years, providing reliable service 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Just call (901) 523-2245.

For more information about us, feel free also to check out our About page.