When our loved one gets arrested, we try our best to get them out of jail. Nobody wants to see their friends or family members behind bars or stay overnight in the darkness of jail. The court does have some processes to get your beloved people out of jail. You can help the accused by being a co-signer during the bail bond process. If you have faith in your loved ones, then you can quickly become a co-signer and help them to get out of jail.
Who is a co-signer?
During the bail procedure in the court, you need a person to guarantee on behalf of the defendant. You have to ensure that the defendant will pay the fine, attend the scheduled court date, and will always attend all the court work whenever summoned. It is the co-signer who guarantees the work of a defendant outside the jail premises. To become a co-signer, a person requires having a good job and a good credit history.
Responsibilities of a co-signer
When a co-signer is signing a bail bond, then he/she does have some primary bail bond cosigner responsibilities towards the court. If the person does not fill the commitment, then he/she is not fit to sign the co-signer papers. There can be more than one co-signer for a defendant.
The first and foremost duty of a co-signer is to sign the contract paper as the legally responsible person on behalf of the defendant. Also, the person should check that the arrested person follows all the aspects of the bail bond accurately. The agency will decide how frequently the defendant should appear before the court. The co-signer must make the defendant appear in court as per requirement. You should remember that if the defendant fails to turn up at the right time, the court will seek the co-signers bail amount.
Another important responsibility is to pay the bail bond premium. The bail bondsman charges a percentage of money of the full bail amount. It is for the service of providing a particular amount of bail money for the defendant and you must deposit the amount before the bail process. The co-signer should keep track that the defendant maintains all the clauses of the bail. If the defendant skips bail, then the bail bondsman may charge a revival fee on the co-signer. The fee is to search the defendant and return them to jail again. Therefore it is the sole interest of the co-signer to take the defendant to court on time.
How much amount the co-signer has to pay?
If the defendant fails to appear, then the co-signer is responsible for paying a charge against it, which is usually the recovery fee. Apart from the recovery fee the bail bonds company may also include additional court fees, legal fees may also get included with the bail amount. Most of the co-signer expense depends on the defendant’s behavior and how regularly the person follows the court’s summons.