At All N One Bonding and Insurance, DBA Lightning Bail, we’re proud to offer high-quality, responsive services when it comes to bail bonds and helping get you, a friend or a loved one released from jail. Our team covers all jails in southern Nevada, and we can also help you with basic services like retaining a defense attorney.
If someone you care for is in jail and qualifies for bail, they may ask you to play an important role in this process: Acting as their indemnitor. This is a person who co-signs the bail bond on behalf of the jailed party, providing the proper financial requirements that companies like ours have to have to provide these services. Being an indemnitor is no small commitment, and we speak with each of these people during the bond process to ensure they completely understand the responsibilities that are placed on them by accepting this role. Here are some basics to be aware of if you’ve been asked to serve as an indemnitor.
Appearance in Court
The primary duty you accept as an indemnitor, besides putting up funds for the bond itself in some cases, is becoming responsible for your friend or loved one’s appearance in court. They’ll be given detailed documents that lay out when hearings and proceedings are scheduled, and it’s expected that they will attend these dates – failure to do so will have consequences not only for them, but for you as well.
It’s important to note that companies like ours are also on the hook for court appearance, as we paid the primary bail amount. If the defendant fails to appear, however, we move into the secondary duties of the indemnitor.
Failure to Appear
In cases where the defendant does not appear, our company will be forced to take steps to attempt to track this person down. This is because we’re responsible for their appearance just like you, and we have to protect this investment.
In most cases, this involves hiring a detective or similar third party with a fugitive recovery specialty. In these situations, you as the indemnitor will be responsible for all fees charged by this party to recover the defendant. That’s not all, either – if the agent is unsuccessful in finding the fleeing defendant, you will be fully responsible for paying the court the full cost of the original bail established, and this is often a large amount. If you used property collateral when co-signing the bond, this will be forfeited so the proceeds can be used to pay the court.
Release of Responsibilities
It’s important to note that once you sign bond paperwork, you’re committed. There’s no deciding you want to change your mind later on. For this reason, we go over the requirements in detail with all our indemnitors before they sign paperwork. You are only released from your responsibilities when the defendant completes all court proceedings, plus all financial obligations from the case have been exhausted.
For more on being an indemnitor, or to learn about any of our bail bond services, Call Us today . 702-333-2663
