When an individual is arrested for a crime, normally that person will be taken to a local detention facility for booking, Posting a bail bond involves a contractual undertaking guaranteed by a bail agent and the individual posting bail. The bail agent guarantees that the defendant will appear in court on each occasion that the judge requests him to.

For this service, the defendant is charged 10% of the bail amount. Prior to the posting of a bail bond, the defendant and the co-signer must guarantee the bail payment in full if the defendant should fail to appear in court. Typically, a family member or close friend will post bail and co-sign. Co-signers usually need to be employed and either own or rent a home in the same area. In the case that the defendant “skips” bail, the co-signer is immediately responsible for the full amount of bail and/or expenses incurred by the bail agent while tracking down the defendant.