What To Do

[Kenny]

I had a family bounce a check over a week ago, they said that they would pay me cash on Friday, they came after hours and gave my husband an envelope. The envelope only had half of what they owed me.
On Saturday I checked the mail and got another bad check, I called the family and told them, so now they owe me a litlle over $600, they said that they would have it to me Monday morning.
The kids just walked in the door, I asked where mom or dad was and they told me that dad just dropped them off and left.
So I now feel that they are trying to avoid me.....what would you do?

[momofboys]

I had a family bounce a check over a week ago, they said that they would pay me cash on Friday, they came after hours and gave my husband an envelope. The envelope only had half of what they owed me.
On Saturday I checked the mail and got another bad check, I called the family and told them, so now they owe me a litlle over $600, they said that they would have it to me Monday morning.
The kids just walked in the door, I asked where mom or dad was and they told me that dad just dropped them off and left.
So I now feel that they are trying to avoid me.....what would you do?

Ughhhh!!!!! I'm sorry you are going through this. Have you called the parents at work? I'd put my foot down & say you must come up-to-date on payment or I will not watch your children. At least that is what I would hope I would say but at the same time I would have a hard time turning them down b/c I would need the $$$ even if they were late.

[TGT09]

How many weeks behind on payment are they? 2? Either way, I would call Mom or Dad to come pick up until payment is made in full with cash. OR, keep today and call to tell them unless payment is made in full by pick-up today then no care tomorrow. That is a lot of money and every day they are racking up more and getting potentially "free" care from you in case they decide to just leave. That's just MO though.

[Unregistered]

I agree with calling the mom and dad at thier work and tell them that payment along with late fees is due at pick up or kids cannot return untill paid in full, tell them if they dont pay they are still being charged for daycare even though they cant come and tell them that ALL payments are now due in CASH or MONEY ORDER only, do you make them pay in advance? I would like to say that id call them to come pick up now as they didnt pay and really if its in your contract you should make them come now, if they refuse start calling thier emergency back-up, but it would also depend on how the parents normaly treat you and if they respect you. DUH! obviously they dont cause they bounced two checks to you and didnt pay you what they owed and ditched the kids at your door instead of coming in, actually nowim getting offended for you, ya id call them at work and either they pick up now or come pay you now to keep them there or first thing in the morning, i also have it that parents HAVE to sign in their kids (no they dont legally,i request it) that way they cant drop & run. Don't take any excuss from them either about why they are late, thats not your concern and more often than not they had the money but daycare is usually the last bill they wana pay and will skimp first on, sad but for me true, well until i made dcp start paying every fri a week before care, now i have no problems. good luck
kiddicare

[Liliya]

What????

Do they not sign children in??? what are they thinking?

[jen]

My parents don't sign in either...although I have NEVER had a parent dump their children at the door and leave!!!!

[judytrickett]

So I now feel that they are trying to avoid me.....what would you do?

I would call them at work and tell them to pick up their kids immediately.

NO PAY - NO STAY!

And THEN, I would tell them that if they even TRY to drop off without paying you tomorrow morning you will call the authorities for "child abandonment".

You simply can NOT allow payment issues. YOU DESERVE TO BE PAID FOR YOUR HARD WORK!!!

Now, the other thing I would do if I had the means to do it is take the kids TO the parents work place and drop them off to them and tell them they didn't pay so you will not care for them. Hell, I would even ask hubby to come home and watch the dckids just so you can do it.

You MUST have a backbone and be assertive when it comes to payment. You must!

[MarinaVanessa]

That's awful. I would deffinetely call at work. By the way you describe it, dropping the kids off without coming in with them doesn't seem like the normal routine so it's a little obvious that they probably didn't have the money and didn't want you to confront them. That's the sheepish way to go. I'd be sooo mad.

I would call them at work and tell them to pick up their kids immediately.

This is what I would do but if you don't feel like going this route a call to the office to clear things up is probably the next best thing. Parent's are just like the kids sometimes in the sense that they'll try to push the envelope and see how far they can go with you. I like to make myself very clear when something bothers me. If it were me in this situation I'd make a list of things that have happened until this morning and then call and go over each. Just repeating facts as they occur to them and saying what their doing outloud can make them feel bad and maybe a little embarrassed but I find that sometimes this is what it takes to get your point across. Maybe I'd say something like this:

"Good morning ***xx. I'm calling you at work because there are a few things that are very important that I discuss with you that can't wait and I wasn't able to talk to you in person this morning. I am reminding you, once again that you are now $*** behind in payment which includes late payment fees and bank charges. I have received (# of bounced checks) checks from your family that have bounced. I will from now on require all payments in full and in the form of cash. On (date) you told me that you would be by to pay your fees and when you came by and gave my husband an envelope of money there was only half the amount in it. You were supposed to leave the full amount. On (date) another check bounced. You said you'd be here this morning to pay the amount that is due but instead you dropped the kids off and left without talking to me and without leaving payment. To be quite honest it makes me feel like you are now trying to avoid me. I need payment for the full amount by today by the time you or anybody else picks up the children. If I don't receive payment in full by today I will not be able to continue watching your kids until you are paid up. I want us to continue to have a good relationship, which we can still have but I need you to be up front and honest and keep to your word."

I usually don't let them talk until I have said what I need to say and then give them the opportunity to say whatever they need to. Be prepared for the "I can't talk now I am at work" thing which I would just counter with "Which is why I wanted to talk to you in person this morning but you just left". I have this sort of thing happen, even the "drop and dash" of the kids so that they can avoid you which is why even though I don't need to have them sign in I choose to do it. That way they HAVE to come inside.

If you don't want to call (or even if you do call) I'd write a letter and keep a copy for yourself in the child's file. Make a day by day timeline of the events and write a letter to them. Make sure to take cash from now on, and say that if payment is not up front then no chidcare. Add an itemized list of what money is owed including childcare fees, late payment fees and bank charges.

And THEN, I would tell them that if they even TRY to drop off without paying you tomorrow morning you will call the authorities for "child abandonment".

This is the way to go if you don't want to try to salvage the agreement. Threatening in my opinion won't solve anything. If you are up front and firm but businesslike you'll have a better chance of recouping your money AND having the family get back on track and staying. Threats will make them deffensive and they may leave without paying you a dime and then you'll have to waste more time and money by sending them to collections or to court. I do, however, love the thought of leaving the kids at moms work if she tried dropping them off without paying. Wicked wicked but I do love it.

Good Luck. Let us know what happens at pick up.

[missnikki]

I agree totally!
Call them at work. I have them fill out emergency cards with the names and #'s of other people to contact in case of emergency- I have been known to call those people and say, "There is no program available for so-and-so today, and they were dropped off without a word from the parent. They need to be picked up immediately. How soon can you be here?"
You can imagine how that opens up the elephant in the room real quick! Usually I get a call from the parent right away, and that's when I say, I will not play games with your children. Come with money if you want them to stay. Come pick them up within 1 hour if you can't pay."
Then have a contract ready to sign that says:
1) I will not drop off/ pick up without adult-to-adult transfers (or signing in/out.).
2) I will pay in cash according to the following terms:________.
3) I understand that any attempt to drop off my children without the required payment and arrival procedure will result in law enforcement intervention uner the child neglect/ abandonment statutes of our state.
SIGN HERE -->_________________________________________
I DO NOT MESS AROUND, HONEY.

[misol]

How many weeks behind on payment are they? 2? Either way, I would call Mom or Dad to come pick up until payment is made in full with cash. OR, keep today and call to tell them unless payment is made in full by pick-up today then no care tomorrow. That is a lot of money and every day they are racking up more and getting potentially "free" care from you in case they decide to just leave. That's just MO though.

Absolutely! I would call dad at work and tell him that the kids need to be picked up NOW. If you are uncomfortable with that then call at work to tell him that unless payment is made in full at pickup tonight there will be no care tomorrow.

I would take a different approach if the parents were upfront in saying that they didn't have the money. But the bounced checks, partial payments, and unattended drop-offs means they are trying to be slick. he nerve of him.

I have in my contract that parents MUST walk children to the door and my parents also have to sign in and out each day. I do this mainly for children's safety and for record keeping purposes but it will also help avoid situations like the crap they pulled today.

Good luck and let us know what happens.

[momma2girls]

Call them at work and tell them they need to come pick up their children, and do not return until payment is brought up to date. It ****s!! I have had this happen to me before as well!!! Also remind them of the late fees you have as well. If this doesn't help, remind them, you will be seeking payment thru the courts as a last resort!!!!

[grandmom]

I wouldn't have the conversation tonight. I'd have it this morning.

Calm yourself down, think of what you're going to say. Type it out if you need to. Then call whoever normally pays you. Tell them they will need to pick the children up NOW, or bring money. They need to feel the pressure NOW, not tonight when they have time to find alternate care.

As for dropping them off. My policy is that parents MUST look me in the eye at drop off and pick up. If I were to have had a heart attack, or (think of your worst nightmare here) would they want to just send their children into that environment? I'm sure they were just avoiding you this morning. Don't let them get away with it.\

[nannyde]

Don't accept envelopes for pay. If they pay in cash open it right in front of them and count it out. I've had too many situations where they claim the whole amount was in there and it wasn't.

[Kenny]

They came to pick up with kids. Had cash in his hands that paid for the bad checks, fees, and paid for the next 2 weeks!

[MarinaVanessa]

Whoo whoo. Did you have a talk? What did they say? I'm so glad it worked out for you. CONGRATULATIONS! And without having things get nasty!! Well, nastier than it was already.