In Tennessee, the bondsman or bail bond agency is allowed to charge the defendant a non-refundable fee of up to 10% of the total amount of the bond. A “managing general agent” is a person appointed or employed by an insurer to oversee the bail bond business that bail agents appointed by the insurer write in Connecticut. The accumulated funds will be due to the bond agent when the bond agreement (of the agent) ends and () the bond obligations for which the funds were deposited are settled. Unlicensed employees who are under the direct supervision and control of an authorized and designated agent, while acting within their work environment, are not prohibited from possessing or executing in the bond office a form other than a power of attorney, a bond form or a guarantee receipt in the bond office. Every January, bondsmen must report to the commissioner the names of those for whom they became bondsmen last year, with the dates, amounts of bonds, and fees collected and paid.
Table 1 compares existing laws for professional bondsmen and bond agents with those proposed for bond agents. Most agencies charge 10 percent of the bond amount as a fee. An insurer, general managing agent, or bond agent is prohibited from delivering any blank form, application, stationery, business card, or other materials used to request, negotiate, or issue bonds to anyone who is not licensed or has been appointed as a bond agent. The cost of a bail premium in Tennessee is 10 percent of the total amount of the bond. If you can't pay it all at once, contact your preferred bond agency and ask them about how to get a flexible payment plan.
Accumulated funds cannot exceed 40% of the bond premium that the insurer contractually authorizes the agent to issue (presumably by bond). To begin the process, simply contact your preferred bail bond agency or submit a bond application online. The Department of Insurance may need additional information to evaluate (a) the reasonableness of rates or to ensure that they are not excessive, inadequate, or unfairly discriminatory; (b) the financial situation or business practices of agents and insurers who execute bonds; and (c) the performance of the commercial bond industry in accordance with appropriate objectives and standards of criminal justice system. This agreement is called a bond, and it allows you to pay only a fraction of its total amount instead of paying it all at once. However, there are times when it is necessary to deny bail if the defendant is a threat to community safety or has a history of bypassing bail. Given that you can get a flexible payment plan with bail bonds agencies, many people choose them over trying to calculate the full amount of the bond on their own.
To sum up, in Tennessee licensed or unlicensed bail bondsmen can charge up to 10% of the total amount of the bond as a fee.
