Private Child Support Collection Agencies subject of several investigative reports:
New!! Beware of law firms stating they can locate an absent parent for a high fee, $200, it can be a "hook" to get you to sign up with them for collections at a high fee
Families report being ripped off by private child support collection agencies.
Includes payments collected by the family themselves, government agencies and private attorneys because the private collector intercepts all payments made after a custodial parent signs power of attorney forms
Desperate to collect child support to feed and cloth their children, some families fall prey to private collection agency schemes that get them to sign misleading contracts and grant powers of attorney that are unbreakable. Several lawsuits have been filed against some private child support collection agencies due to these problems
Other problems
The private collection agency collected payments from the non-custodial parent but never sent the payments to the family. Private agencies have closed down and totally disappeared after custodial parents have paid application fees of over $100.Families owed support have had to pay additional court costs and attorney's fees on top of the 30- 50% fee taken from the child support collected.
Purchase
How to Collect Child Support, 3rd Edition