Advertising rules for bail agents

Who sets the rules

Bail agents are licensed by their state, and in some places by their county as well. In California the Department of Insurance licenses bail agents. In Texas, a county bail bond board licenses the sureties who write bonds in that county and adopts local rules for them.

Many of these rules reach into advertising, so the ad that carries your word number has to meet them. A few examples follow; they are not a complete list for any state.

Sources: California Department of Insurance: reminder of bail solicitation laws (September 21, 2023); Harris County Bail Bond Board local rules (November 12, 2025)

California

• Business cards and print ads distributed only in California must show the license number in type at least as large as any phone number, address or fax number on them (Insurance Code section 1725.5). The Department of Insurance lists bail agents among the licensees this covers.
• Ads and yellow pages listings under a fictitious business name must show the true name of the licensee who owns it with equal prominence (10 CCR 2066.5).
• A bail licensee may not present itself as a fidelity or surety insurer, or advertise under Surety or Fidelity in the yellow pages (10 CCR 2067).

Sources: California Insurance Code 1725.5: license numbers on cards, quotes and print ads; California Department of Insurance Bulletin 96-8: questions on Insurance Code 1725.5; 10 CCR 2066.5: advertising of fictitious names; 10 CCR 2067: misrepresenting capacity or authority

Florida

Any ad a bail agent or agency may run must include the address of record filed with the state, and an agency may not advertise as a bail bond or surety company (Florida Statutes section 648.44).

Florida also bars soliciting at jails, courts and their grounds, which includes showing or handing out items there that advertise bail bonds. Its rule says ads on the internet, television, in newspapers, magazines or the telephone book are not soliciting (Florida Administrative Code rule 69B-221.095).

Sources: Florida Statutes 648.44: prohibitions for bail bond agents and agencies; Florida Administrative Code 69B-221.095: soliciting business

Washington

Ads that solicit business must carry the business name exactly as it appears on the bail bond agency license, the physical address on that license, and the license number. Telephone directory listings that give only the name, address and phone number do not need the license number (WAC 308-19-430).

Source: WAC 308-19-430: false or misleading advertising by bail bond agencies

Texas counties

In Harris County, a licensee may not use a phone number, address or name to advertise or solicit bonds without prior notice to or approval by the county bail bond board, and every ad must show a valid license number (Harris County Bail Bond Board local rule 10).

In Travis County, print, broadcast and internet ads must identify the surety. For an individual licensee that means the proper name, the license number and the counties where the license is held. Ads may not misrepresent a surety's authority (Travis County Bail Bond Board rules, section F.2).

State law also bars a Texas surety or its agent from soliciting bonds in a police station, jail or other place of detention (Texas Occupations Code section 1704.304).

Sources: Harris County Bail Bond Board local rules (November 12, 2025); Travis County Bail Bond Board rules and regulations (amended May 6, 2026); Texas Occupations Code 1704.304: prohibited recommendations or solicitations

Virginia

Only licensed bail bondsmen may solicit bail bond business in Virginia, and they may not leave advertising material in any court, jail or lock-up or on the government property around them (Code of Virginia section 9.1-185.9 and 6VAC20-250-260).

Sources: Code of Virginia 9.1-185.9: solicitation of business by bail bondsmen; 6VAC20-250-260: solicitation of business, standards and restrictions

What this means for a word number

None of the rules above forbids a phone number that spells a word. They govern the ad around it: the name, the license number, the address and sometimes the counties. Put those next to your word number on every card, sign and page, at the size the rules ask for.

Where a county board wants notice of the phone numbers you advertise, as Harris County does, tell it before the new number goes on a sign.

Rules change and differ from place to place. This page is general information, not legal or insurance advice. Read the current rules from your state licensing agency and county board before you advertise.

Source: Harris County Bail Bond Board local rules (November 12, 2025)