A New York-based bondsman has found himself in hot water for behaving badly.

In addition to sending clients back to jail without reason, court records allege George Zouvelos, charged them exorbitant fees for his services.

The shady bondsman landed on law enforcement radar last summer after he tossed more than a dozen bailed out defendants back in the big house for failing to make a weekly sign in appointment at his office.

Those appointments all took place on July 4, a day the office was closed for business.

Judges, law enforcement members and other licensed agents have said this is exactly the type of thing that gives the commercial bail industry a bad name.  Most are hopeful court will throw the proverbial book at this man in hopes of deterring others from following in his steps.

George Zouvelos has long been licensed to operate as a personal bondsman.  His company, however, never sought the proper state credentials.  The New York Department of Finance said they have received more than 110 complaints against the agency in the past 8 years.

Those who have worked with Zouvelos in the past have said his contract is more than 87 paragraphs long and stipulates that defendants can be thrown back in jail if they violate any of its terms and conditions.  It goes onto say that if a bond is revoked, they agree to let Zouvelos keep between 10% and 15% of the posted collateral to cover costs, expenses and fees.

New York corrections department officials say they typically see a bondsman surrender one defendant per month.  In July, when the bondsman turned defendant brought in 15 people on one day,  alarms started going off.

Many of those defendants needed to arrange a second bond in order to be re-released from custody.  Their family members need to start the process all over again, post additional collateral and a second round of fees- this time to a reputable agent.

Zouvelos reportedly continues to maintain he's done nothing wrong and has chocked up the complaints due to other companies being jealous of his success.

So what does this mean for the average person?  A lot, when you think about it.

Unless you've previously been asked to get someone out of jail it's very common for people to have little understanding of how the commercial bail bonds industry works, and many families approach hiring a bondsman like they would any other major expense.

Saving money can make a big difference in terms of who they ultimately hire. In these types of situations, though, clients should focus more on a bondsman's reputation and less on who can give them the best deal.

Cheap, discount bail bonds often come with a much greater price.  In this case, the cost of doing business relates to dealing with an agent who seemingly tosses people back into jail once he gets his hands on their money.

At the end of the day, working with an unscrupulous bondsman can cost a lot more than hiring a reputable agent from the start.

So how do you know who you can trust?

First, start off with asking about their bail license.  Do they have one? Is it up to date and valid?  Will they provide the license number to you over the phone?  Many states have websites where you can check to verify a bondsman's information online.

Do they have a website, Yelp page or social media pages?  What types of client testimonials do they have?  What are people posting on their Facebook and Twitter?   Are there any scathing "buyer beware" posts?  If the answer is yes, it's OK to move on.

You can also check to see if the company is accredited with the Better Business Bureau.  Info garnered from the BBB can often be invaluable.

The bottom line is that finding out that someone you care for has been arrested can be one of the most stressful and gut-wrenching things you'll ever experience.   Working with a trustworthy bondsman can help ensure that an already bad situation does not turn worse.