How Fugitive Recovery Works

Just because you make a payment to the bond company does not mean you’re responsible for anything. You’re only responsible if you sign a contract with a company stating you are, what is called a co-signer, on that specific case. And the company will explain the responsibilities to you.

Responsibilities to you regarding missed payments, missed court fees and recovery fees, etc. You should contact your bond company for clear information because it does vary case to case.

Bounty hunters, also known as fugitive recovery agents, track down and apprehend fugitives who have run away from court hearings. Many of them have experience working in law enforcement, which gives them insight and expertise that puts them ahead of bail jumpers. According to studies, the success percentage of the country’s bounty hunters is from 88% to 91%.

Recovery agents are typically VERY expensive for the use of their services.

Although many bounty hunters have self-defense training, they usually employ research, persuasion to apprehend fugitives rather than using physical force. They may use any of the following techniques to find and apprehend defendants:

• Background checks
• Criminal record checks

The majority of fugitive recovery agents are employed by bail agents, however they are not the only ones. Occasionally, those who have paid the full bail money for a friend or member of their family only to have them run away engage bounty hunters to bring them back for failure to appear for their court date.

Costs to hire fugitive recovery agents vary from business to business and is typically VERY expensive. Many agencies will charge flat fees for individual services such as skip tracing. For locate-and-apprehend jobs, they will often base their fees on a percentage of the total bond amount, plus money for costs such as travel expenses. Most fugitive recovery agents work on a contingency basis.