Compliance Information: Bail Bond Agencies

It is typically not required to seek the Department’s approval of your agency name. However, the use of a name that would be misleading or deceptive in any way should be avoided. Names chosen should not imply that the agency is an insurance company (including bail bond and surety companies), governmental agency, or any other national or state organization. They should also not imply a reduced rate of premium or have the word "free" in it. Any bail bond agent who intends to conduct business under any business name, other than his or her own individual name, is required to file form DFS-H2-1541 with us before they may operate or advertise. Please see 648.44(6), F.S.

A fictitious name, or as more commonly known, doing business as (DBA), must be properly registered with the Department of State, Bureau of Corporations; however, the Department has determined that the use of multiple fictitious names (DBAs) is misleading to the public. Accordingly, no insurance, bail bond, or title agency, adjusting firm, or any other business entity regulated by the Department of Financial Services, Division of Agent and Agency Services may use more than one DBA per business entity.

Your agency must have a sign to be in compliance with the law. The sign must be visible from the street to identify the location of your agency to the public. If your agency is located in a corporate office building, the agency must be listed in the building's business directory.

Attorneys may not own or operate a bail bond agency. Bail bond agents and agencies may not refer business to an attorney or group of attorneys.

You are required to have a primary bail bond agent for each bail bond agency you own and for each location of your bail bond agency in accordance with section 648.387, F.S. The primary agent must be a licensed and appointed bail bond agent and may not be the designated primary agent for more than one location.

To do so, you will need to create a secure MyProfile Bail Bond Agency account type. When you do this, you will be able to do the following actions:

• Add Owner/Officer
• Designate and delete a primary bail bond agent.
• Add locations
• Delete locations
• Change an address
• Change login information
• Email Address Changes
• Grant Third-Party Privileges

For more instructions, please see our Bail Bond Agency Primary Agent User Guide.

As the Department strives to go paperless, the switch from paper to electronic is convenient and will allow licensees to update their individual and bail bond agency information via their secure MyProfile accounts in real time online.

This allows the consumer-buying public to find and locate bail bond agents and agencies on the Department’s Licensee Search. This is something that they could not do previously.

Also, now jails and courts will be able to verify that a bail bond agent and agency is registered with the Department after they have designated a primary bail bond agent for a location.

Power of attorney forms used for the purpose of writing bail bonds in the state of Florida may only be used if the sample copy has been filed by the insurer with, and approved by, the Office of Insurance Regulation. See section 648.43(1), F.S. (revised July 1, 2014)

Bail bond agencies must be owned by licensed and appointed bail bond agents only. The bail bond agency must file the name of the agency with the department, along with the name and license number of the bail bond agent designated as the primary bail bond agent. In addition, the agency must be open and accessible to the public for at least 8 hours during the normal work day, which is defined as 8:00 am to 6:00 pm, Monday through Friday, except legal holidays.

All bail bond agents who are members of the same agency must be appointed to represent the same surety companies (insurers). Also, if any agent of a bail bond agency is licensed and appointed as a professional bail bond agent, all the agents in the agency must be licensed as one. Please see section 648.55, F.S.

The following persons would not be allowed to be a bail bond agency owner nor be employed at a bail bond agency. Refer to sections 648.285, F.S. and 648.44(2), F.S.

• Jailers or persons employed in any jail
• Police officers or employees of a law enforcement agency
• Judges, employees of a court, or employees of the clerk of any court
• Sheriffs and deputy sheriffs or employees of any sheriff’s department
• Attorneys
• Persons having the power to arrest or persons who have authority over or control of prisoners
• Any person who has been convicted or pleaded guilty or no contest to a felony or a crime involving moral turpitude
• Any person who previously had their license to be a limited surety (bail bond) agent, temporary bail bond agent or professional bail bond agent revoked.