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06-03: Bail Bond Fictitious Names
To:
General Bail Bond Agents, Bail Bond Agents, and Missouri Courts
From: Mary Kempker
Director of the Consumer Affairs Division
Missouri Department of Insurance, Financial Institutions and
Professional
Registration
Date:
October 5, 2006
The Consumer Affairs Division of the Missouri Department of
Insurance, Financial Institutions and Professional Registration (DIFP) seeks to
provide guidance for individual bail bond agents doing business under any name
other than their own name. Fictitious names can take the form of marketing names
or doing business as names. This bulletin
outlines the division’s position on this issue.
General bail bond agents and bail bond agents, doing
business in this state, are required to be licensed. Individuals, upon receiving approval of their
application from the Department, are licensed to conduct business in this state
with a license bearing his/her individual name.
Over the years, many agents have conducted bail bond
business under a “marketing name” (used in a general sense to encompass all
variations of such), as opposed to using the name that appears on their license
with the Department. Tracking bonds and
unpaid forfeitures is difficult because the agent holds licensure with the Department
under his/her individual name but uses a different name when writing bonds in
the court system. This misuse of a
marketing name can result in uncollectible forfeitures.
All general bail bond agents are required to secure a duly
executed assignment of $10,000 to the state of
Missouri
, usually taking the form of a
certificate of deposit. This requirement
provides a minimum amount of security against unpaid forfeitures. The process of seeking collection against this
certificate of deposit is a combined effort between the Department and
Missouri
courts. The courts notify the Department of unpaid
forfeitures, and the Department works with them in using the $10,000 assignment
to help defray the costs associated with those forfeitures. However, should a bail bond agent use a
marketing name in writing bond with a court, but maintain licensure with the Department
under an individual name, collection of forfeitures is confused.
It is the view of the Consumer Affairs Division that any use
of a marketing name that does not clearly communicate the name of the properly
licensed general bail bond agent would constitute misconduct or
misrepresentation. Misconduct or
misrepresentation in the performance of the functions of a bail bond agent may
result in an action by the director to discipline the agent’s license.
As such, bail bond agents are required to conduct business
under the names by which they use to maintain licensure with the Department, or
use a generally recognizable version of such name. This generally recognizable version of such
name must be in a form that the Department,
Missouri
courts, and the general public
recognize as a licensed agent. This will
enable Missouri courts to easily monitor who is writing bonds in their courts,
disable those bail bond agents that do not maintain current licensure with the Department
and curtail those agents that have unsatisfied forfeitures with the courts from
writing additional bonds.
