After an individual has been arrested, there are a few courses of action they can take. The first and least desirable is to stay in jail to await trial. The most straightforward way of avoiding this jail time is paying bail, either in full or with a bond. The full cost of bail is typically quite expensive. Even for minor crimes, bail will typically be set at a cost of hundreds of dollars. By far, the most affordable method of pretrial release from jail is purchasing a surety bond.

Bail bond companies work with the courts to guarantee that an arrested individual will appear at court during their appointed trial time. Because of their relationships with the courts, they can offer bonds at only a fraction of the cost of bail, usually 10 percent. In many states, adding any kind of discount to that 10 percent is actually illegal meaning that buying a bond is literally the cheapest way to legally escape jail.

There are many benefits to buying a bond on top of just saving money. For example, there are more flexible payment options with a bond than with paying bail outright. In many cases, you are able to exchange cash or collateral for your bond. The biggest benefit to buying a bond, however, is being connected with a knowledgeable bond agent who can successfully navigate the bail system with you. Bond agents have the experience and knowledge to make the bailing out process as fast and uncomplicated as possible. Most are familiar with a wide variety of cases and will provide you the service that best fits your needs.

One of the key difference between buying a bond and paying bail that you should be aware of is the fact that bonds are nonrefundable whereas bail is returned to the payer after the trial. This is sometimes seen as the “downside” to buying a bond but truthfully, the amount of money saved upfront is well worth the loss. Besides that, not all of the bail money is returned after trial when bail is paid in full. A portion of the money is kept as the court fee. Allocating funds to a bonding agent as opposed to paying the court directly has many, many upsides, some of which we’ve already explained. One last huge benefit to using a bail bond company is that nobody has to go down to the jail until the inmate is ready to be picked up. Showing up at a jail without a bond prepared often leads to waiting around the jail for hours while officers work through your case. Save money and save time by buying a bail bond!