FAQs

When people think of bail, they often think the bail bond IS the money that is paid to get a defendant out of jail, but that’s not the case. A bail bond is the agreement by the accused to appear for their scheduled trial OR they will pay the amount of money set by the court. The bail bond agreement is cosigned by a professional bail bondsman, who will charge a fee to the defendant for the service of guaranteeing the payment.

Typically, the amount a judge sets for bail is higher than most people are able to pay in full. Instead of having the defendant wait in jail until their trial, which could be months away, a professional bail bond company can pay bail fees to the court on the defendant’s behalf. Bail bond agents charge the defendant a fee for this service, which is usually around 10% of the total bail cost. For a full understanding of the way bail bonds work, visit our How Bail Works page.

Working with a professional bail bond company is relatively straightforward. When you call, you’ll need to have some basic information available, such as the name of the accused, the charges against them, the bail amount, and where they are being held. The bail bonds professional will use this information to get all of the proper paperwork in order and walk you through the cosigner agreement, payment information, and other important documents. Once these are completed and signed, the paperwork will be filed with the court and processed to get your loved one released to you to await their court date.

You can use the State of Connecticut Judicial Branch website to look up information on all types of court cases.

Anyone over the age of 18 can pay a suspect’s bail. Usually it will be a family member, close friend, or professional bail bondsman. 

Bail for most crimes will be set using a bail schedule, which lists the typical amount based on the type of charges. However, a judge can set bail at whatever level they decide, and can also decide not to award bail at all. Several factors can go into this, including the type of crime, criminal history of the defendant, the age of the defendant and of any victims, and other relevant case information. For more information on being denied bail, visit our Bail Bond Limits page.

Mike’s Bail Bonds offers 24/7 service so that you can assist your loved one with bail day or night, any day of the year. 

By obtaining a bail bond, the defendant is promising to attend their scheduled court date OR pay the money owed to the court. Due to this, the only way you will get your money back is if the accused attends court on their scheduled date and follows all the terms/conditions of the bail agreement. 

If you paid the bail amount in cash to the court, and at the trial the accused receives an acquittal, diversionary program, sentence, or the charges against them are dropped, you will likely receive your bail money back. This can take anywhere from 2 weeks to a few months. 

If the defendant does NOT attend their scheduled court date, they have violated the bail agreement and you will not get your money back. They will likely also get hit with a failure to appear charge. 

It is important to note that if you work with a professional bail bondsman, any fees of service you pay to the bail bonds company will not be returned to you. However, this option is often much more affordable than putting up the full bail amount yourself. If you use the services of a bail bonds company and the defendant fails to attend their court date, they can also expect a visit from a bounty hunter.