Questions and Answers About Our Private Child Support Enforcement Agency

Do I need a support order for you to help me?
Yes, we only get involved in cases in which the obligation for support has already been established and the absent parent is past due.

What do you do differently than the state enforcement office?
Our collection effort is much more intensified than any state agency, we pursue communication with the absent parent, we actively seek out their assets, and we hold them accountable for each payment. We have the time to spend on individual cases that a state does not have. We have the incentive for the collection.

When should I check the status of my case with you?
After completing the application and mailing your packet to us you should check to see that we have received it within 7 days, we may have some questions we need answered. We can then give some idea how long it will take before we begin enforcement action. A lot of this depends on the amount of court documentation you are able to provide. If you are applying without that information it may take longer depending on the response time of the court and payment registry.

Do you work cases in every state?
No, some states have sought to eliminate private support enforcement and a few have succeeded. Please answer the questions for eligibility to determine if this will have any effect on your options. If the support order is established in certain states that are non-cooperative we only except direct pay cases in those states.

What does it cost me to get started using your service?
There are no up front fees and no application fees, our services are provided on a contingency basis. We collect or we don’t get paid.

How do you get paid?
We keep 28% of what ever is collected, if we do not collect the service costs you nothing. Our fee is explained very clearly in our contract for services, please make sure you understand it completely or ask questions.

Can you help me raise my child support order?
The focus of this agency is collect the past due support, not modify the support order. If during that effort modifying the support order can help us enforce that order we may try. We make no representation as to the appropriateness of the order given the current financial state of both parties.

How do I cancel my contract with you?
You have three options
1. We collect the contracted arrearage amount in full.
2. You notify our agency in writing at the end of any consecutive 12 month period during which no child support is collected of your desire to end the contract.
3. You notify the agency in writing of your desire to end the contract when the contracted arrearage dollar amount has been collected.

What if I do not know where the absent parent is?
Not a problem, it is part of our service to locate the absent parent; we will ask you for as much information as you can provide and we will take it from there. We have many sources at our disposal for location but the best one is good old fashioned hard work.

My children are over the age of 18, can you still help me collect support?
Yes, if a child support arrearage exists we believe we can continue to assist your effort to enforce the order. Many limitations come into play but if your child is under the age of 28 we would be willing to try.

What paperwork do I need from the court to get started?
We would like to have a chronological case summary; this is a brief summary of each time your case was in court. We need a complete payment history or computation of arrears. If you are able to provide your court documentation we can move much quicker however, if this is not possible we need something that indicates the support obligation and we will try to gather the paperwork ourselves.

Can the Absent Parent be held responsible for the commission fee I have to pay?
No, at this time the absent parent can not be made responsible for our fees that responsibility falls squarely on you. This is why it is very important that you clearly understand you are making a sacrifice when you use private enforcement. That sacrifice may be the only reason you receive the support that is owed but, it is a sacrifice none the less.

Can you help me collect when the parent is in prison?
No, we can try to help you after they have been released but not while they are incarcerated. Additionally we will not pursue collection from any parent that has been convicted of a violent crime.

The absent parent has moved to another state, can you help?
Yes, collection on this type of case is the most difficult case any enforcement office deals with. It is also the type of case that requires a more hands on approach that is the specialty of private enforcement. This is the situation in over half the cases we have worked, and our success rate is 70%.

Do you take commission on the entire payment?
Yes, we take 28% of each and every payment paid until the contracted arrearage has been collected. The example would be we got a check today for $100.00 we take $28.00 and send you $72.00. If we get $10,000.00 we take $2,800.00 and send you $7,200.00.

The absent parent pays a little every now and then, can you help?
Yes, the majority of the cases we work the absent parent has not paid for 2 years. If payments are coming in on your case you need to decide if you could still receive more money after our commission has been deducted to make this choice. A general rule for this is, if the parent is paying half of what is ordered chances are good you would receive more.

If the support is not being paid do I still need to allow visitation?
Yes, in most cases these are two separate orders and one has nothing to do with the other. Don’t play this game, it does not work and the one punished is the child. Look at it this way, it is very difficult to spend time with your children as a parent and not want to care for them. On the other hand if you have no relationship with the child it is easier to put your needs in front of theirs.