Breaking your bail

    What happens if I break the conditions of my bail?

    If you break any of the conditions of your bail, you could be arrested, fined or sent to prison.

    You could be arrested and sent to prison for up to two years. The court could also make you pay a fine.

    You could also have your bail cancelled. This means that you won’t be free to go home anymore – you will be locked up in custody until your court hearing.

    If you or someone else promised to give up property or a fixed amount of money for your bail to guarantee that you would follow all the rules of your bail, then you or that person could lose that money or property.

    Finally, if you are accused of a crime again, you may not be given bail next time. The judge, or magistrate might not trust you to follow your conditions if they can see that you’ve broken the conditions or rules of your bail before.

    What do I do if I have broken one of my bail rules or “conditions”?

    Get legal advice straight away. Don’t wait to get arrested. If you do nothing, you will be in more trouble.

    What do I do if I have a good reason for breaking my bail rules or “conditions”?

    If you break any of the rules or conditions of your bail, your bail could be cancelled, and you could be arrested, fined or sent to prison.

    If you haven’t yet broken a rule or condition, you can ask to have your bail conditions changed. If you have already broken a condition, you should get legal advice straight away. It is rare there is a good reason for breaking bail conditions, but if you think that you do have a good reason you will need to explain this to the court as soon as you can. The judge or magistrate will decide if it was a good reason or not. If you don’t tell the court after breaking your bail, your bail could be cancelled, and you could be arrested, fined or sent to prison.