Bounty hunters, or bail recovery agents as they are known in Washington, manage to earn a living chasing fugitives of justice over the mountain ranges, sage brush scrub land, cities and farm pastures of the Evergreen State. The bail bondsman business also continues to grow as the state’s population increases and people continue to get in trouble with the law.
There are two distinctions to keep in mind when considering the yearly earnings of bounty hunters and bail bondsmen in Washington: earnings made from salaries and earnings made from percentage fees. For run-of-the-mill cases, a bail bondsman will charge a defendant 10 percent of their bail amount as a fee. Bounty hunters generally earn that same percentage when they track down and re-arrest a defendant who has fled.
Of course, percentages and fees will vary from case to case; particularly tricky bounties can be worth 70 percent of the entire amount of bail. The following figures only represent the average annual salaries earned, such as by those working in their professions in the employment of an agency, and do not include percentage or other fees.
Bounty Hunter Salary in Washington
The average annual salary of a bounty hunter working in Washington was recently calculated as follows:
- $46,000-Statewide
- $47,000-Seattle
- $47,000 Tacoma
- $41,000 Spokane
- $47,000 Bellevue
Bail Bondsman Salary in Washington
Percentage fees, particularly important to bail bondsmen, are not included in the following data:
- $23,000-Statewide
- $24,000-Seattle
- $24,000-Tacoma
- $20,000-Spokane
- $24,000-Bellevue
Salary figures are also closely linked to personal ambition and work ethic. Other factors that have a direct bearing on salary figures for both bail bondsmen and bounty hunters include:
- Personal reputation
- Location of business
- Professional contacts and references
- Work experience and level of education