                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT STANDARDS; GROUNDS FOR DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS (§ 9.1-185.8)

A. Any violations of the restrictions or standards under this statute shall be
grounds for placing on probation, refusal to issue or renew, sanctioning,
suspension or revocation of the bail bondsman&#8217;s license. A licensed bail
bondsman is responsible for ensuring that his employees, partners and
individuals contracted to perform services for or on behalf of the bonding
business comply with all of these provisions, and do not violate any of the
restrictions that apply to bail bondsmen. Violations by a bondsman&#8217;s
employee, partner, or agent may be grounds for disciplinary action against the
bondsman, including probation, suspension or revocation of license.

B. A licensed bail bondsman shall not:

   1. Knowingly commit, or be a party to, any material fraud, misrepresentation,
   concealment, conspiracy, collusion, forgery, scheme or device whereby any
   other person lawfully relies upon the word, representation, or conduct of the
   bail bondsman.

   2. Solicit sexual favors or extort additional consideration as a condition of
   obtaining, maintaining, or exonerating bail bond, regardless of the identity
   of the person who performs the favors.

   3. Conduct a bail bond transaction that demonstrates bad faith, dishonesty,
   coercion, incompetence, extortion or untrustworthiness.

   4. Coerce, suggest, aid and abet, offer promise of favor, or threaten any
   person on whose bond he is surety or offers to become surety, to induce that
   person to commit any crime.

   5. Give or receive, directly or indirectly, any gift of any kind to any
   nonelected public official or any employee of a governmental agency involved
   with the administration of justice, including but not limited to
   law-enforcement personnel, magistrates, judges, and jail employees, as well as
   attorneys. De minimis gifts, not to exceed $50 per year per recipient, are
   acceptable, provided the purpose of the gift is not to directly solicit
   business, or would otherwise be a violation of Board regulations or the laws
   of the Commonwealth.

   6. Fail to comply with any of the statutory or regulatory requirements
   governing licensed bail bondsmen.

   7. Fail to cooperate with any investigation by the Department.

   8. Fail to comply with any subpoena issued by the Department.

   9. Provide materially incorrect, misleading, incomplete or untrue information
   in a license application, renewal application, or any other document filed
   with the Department.

   10. Provide bail for any person if he is also an attorney representing that
   person.

   11. Provide bail for any person if the bondsman was initially involved in the
   arrest of that person.

C. A licensed bail bondsman shall ensure that each recognizance on all bonds for
which he signs shall contain the name and contact information for both the
surety agent and the registered agent of the issuing company.

D. An administrative fee may be charged by a bail bondsman, not to exceed
reasonable costs. Reasonable costs may include, but are not limited to, travel,
court time, recovery fees, phone expenses, administrative overhead and postage.

E. A property bail bondsman shall not enter into any bond if the aggregate of
the penalty of such bond and all other bonds, on which he has not been released
from liability, is in excess of four times the true market value of the equity
in his real estate, cash or certificates of deposit issued by a federally
insured institution, or any combination thereof.

F. A property bail bondsman or his agent shall not refuse to cover any
forfeiture of bond against him or refuse to pay such forfeiture after notice and
final order of the court.

G. A surety bail bondsman shall not write bail bonds on any qualifying power of
attorney for which a copy has not been filed with the Department.

H. A surety bail bondsman shall not violate any of the statutes or regulations
that govern insurance agents.

I. A licensed bail bondsman shall not charge a bail bond premium less than 10
percent or more than 15 percent of the amount of the bond. A licensed bail
bondsman shall not loan money with interest for the purpose of helping another
obtain a bail bond.
			For the purposes of this subsection, &#8220;bail bond premium&#8221; means
the amount of money paid to a licensed bail bondsman for the execution of a bail
bond.

J. A licensed bail bondsman who has been arrested for a felony offense shall not
issue any new bonds pending the outcome of the investigation by the Department.

K. If a recognizance is forfeited pursuant to &#xA7; 19.2-143 and such
recognizance is not paid by 4:00 p.m. on the last day of the 150-day period from
the finding of default, the clerk shall notify the Department of such default
and the Department shall suspend the license of any bail bondsman on the bond in
the forfeited recognizance until the forfeited recognizance is satisfied, unless
suspended for another cause. If any employer of such bail bondsman receives
notice pursuant to &#xA7; 19.2-143 to pay a forfeited recognizance within 10
business days and such forfeiture is not paid within 10 business days of the
notice to pay, the Department shall suspend the licenses of the employer of the
bail bondsman and the agents thereof until the forfeited recognizance is
satisfied, unless suspended for another cause.

HISTORY: 2004, c. 460; 2007, c. 708; 2011, c. 623; 2015, c. 600; 2019, c. 200.