If you are ready to contract, hopefully by now you have read all of the information under Initial Inquiry. Also we hope that by now all parties to custody to the young person you are concerned about have spoken with Tom Croke. It is the policy of FamilyLight to contract only after we have spoken by phone with all parties to custody of the young person of concern, if that person is a minor. We do make exceptions in very rare circumstances, but that will require discussion. If the young person you are concerned about is legally an adult, we still need to speak with the person initiating this and perhaps with others. If you have not yet phoned us, and you want to purchase our services, please phone us now. Contact Information It helps if you have a copy of our Service Agreement printed and in front of you when you call.
When you phone to finalize arrangements, we will give you our price quotation, if we have not already done so. Keep in mind that you will be responsible for two payments: Our fee and travel expense for the home visit. Our fee must be paid in advance. Air Fare if air travel is involved will usually be paid in advance. All other travel expenses may usually be paid when billed after travel occurs, although we reserve the right to require a deposit to cover travel in advance of travel.
We will want to verify that you understand what we can do -- and what we cannot do. When we are sure that everyone involved understands what to expect, we will set a date for a home visit and make payment arrangements. We will then email you a Service Agreement for signature using the form you see here, but with blanks filled in according to your individual situation.
Service Agreement (PDF)
Service Agreement (DOC)
To read PDF files, this link goes to a free download: 
This version of the service agreement replaces what is linked in our Old Format. Use one of these to check out what we are asking you to sign, but please allow us to send you a copy with the blanks filled in according to what you have told us about your situation.
We also ask you to complete and return to us the following (these are also on Forms and Links you Need in both PDF and .doc or .docx format:
- FamilyLight Fact Sheet: A one page listing to give us contact information and other basic identity information.
- Authorization to Release (not HIPPA Compliant; only authorizes release by us.)
- Authorization to Release (HIPPA Compliant; use to release information from any person or organization subject to HIPPA; this is not a form created by FamilyLight. Some health care providers that are subject to HIPPA will prefer that you use a form they will supply upon request, but we believe the form at this link meets all legal requirements.)
- Checklist for Home Visit
Under most circumstances, we can be paid by PayPal, credit card, personal check, direct deposit to our account (for clients who live in the area served by Citizens Bank, some of which were Charter One until 2015), or by wire transfer or other electronic transfer. If we are paid by a means other than credit card or PayPal, and the money is in our account as available funds before the start date on our service agreement, we give a 5% discount from the stated rate. For clients using direct deposit, it is important to make sure the funds are deposited for immediate availability if you are depending on the 5% discount. That may require a bank check or certified check or direct transfer from another Citizens/Charter One account. Most clients take advantage of the 5% discount.
Some clients ask about payments over time. We do not agree to that. If you need to make time payments, we suggest that you use a credit card. That puts the billing and record keeping in the hands of someone in that business.
We have converted our credit card processing so that such payments are made only through PayPal. Among the advantages of that is that only a well established financial organization accesses your private credit card information. That also erases our potential liability if your data is ever misused. Only PayPal receives your credit card information.
To pay consulting fee through PayPal, click here. This is not for people who simply want to purchase a membership in the"pay to access" section of our website.
We also want to call attention to several points that you might overlook in the Service Agreement if we do not call attention to them. Generally if we fly to the home visit, we use Southwest Airlines if at all possible. Southwest offers fully refundable Senior Fares and frequently lower nonrefundable fares. In case of foreign travel (Trans Atlantic or Trans Pacific), International Business Class on a major trunk carrier may be necessary. That applies if it is necessary to arriving at the destination mentally prepared to work. Hotel selection is normally from the Hilton Family of Hotels, if at all possible in the price range of Hampton Inns.
When we use air travel to go to the home visit, we may need signed authorization to purchase an airline ticket on your credit card. We try to avoid this situation but it can arise especially if we must use an airline other than Southwest. In that situation you will need to use our Credit Card Authorization form. This is the only situation where we ask you to provide us with your credit card numbers.
We do not accept referral fees from schools and programs and attempt to avoid conflict of interest in any form. If we refer to a program where we have had a prior business relationship that we are aware of, we will disclose the prior relationship. We will definitely disclose any that have occurred within the past five years. Generally we disclose any regardless of how long ago. What are we protecting when we say "prior business relationship that we are aware of?" We might not know all business connections of a school or program we provide with consulting services. If we do a job for a school or program we might not know what other programs are owned by the same owners.
In addition, we ask you to complete several other forms that show on the page Forms and Links You Need.
Thank you for your interest.
Please read our full disclaimer. You are responsible for verifying our information before acting on it.
Checklist for Home Visit (Currently in Old Format; to be updated in New Format)
Return to Individual Services of FamilyLight
Archived version of this notice in Old Format
Last updated August 30, 2016