CSA just bleeds fathers dry

February 26, 2015

After my ex-wife decided that the £30 a week I was paying her was not enough she told me to cancel the standing order for the £30 weekly payments and informed me that she had registered with the csa as she (was entitled) to more money for our 5 year old Son.

So after receiving letters from the CSA notifying me that they were now in the process of calculating how much my weekly payments were going to be I went and cancelled the standing order as per my ex-wife’s request.

I provided all the information required and I also informed the csa that I had moved out of the area since we split and I am also incurring travel costs on top of the £30 I was paying when we had the amicable agreement.

The CSA informed me that I could fill in a variation document which they sent me and I returned via 1st class signed for delivery. I spent a lot of time outlining the details of the travel costs I incur and the fact that my ex point blankly refuses to contribute to the traveling involved for me to maintain contact with my Son.

I also informed them of debts I am still paying from joint loans and credit agreements etc we had before we split. Also the fact that I cloth, feed, provide holidays for and everything else my Son needed to have to have a comfortable upbringing after the effects he’s had to endure from his parents separation.

So I wait..and I wait…and I wait some more. For a response to my variation application.

Fed up of waiting after 3 months I made a couple of phone calls to the csa and each time they told me they would look into it and someone would call me back.

Nobody ever did.

Then after approx 9-10 months I received a letter from them, telling me they have calculated that I will be paying £47 a week and on top of that a payment of £35 for arrears incurred.(hang on a minute, the delay was your fault!!) And an attachment of earnings had been setup and the money would be taken directly out of my salary. £83 a week.

No mention of the re-calculation based on the information I provided in the variation document.

So after a few lengthy phone calls. Where I was close to tears after being told that £83 a week; totalling £332 a month was to be taken straight out of my salary. I asked them about the variation information I provided.

They informed me that they hadn’t received it and that they would request it from there document storage location and get back to me.

Then I called again. And apparently they are unable to locate it but they will keep me updated.

I’m still waiting.

So to sum it up. I am now paying £332 a month and I have very little disposable income left to be able to afford the travel cost I incur every month to collect and return my Son to his mother.

I have obviously informed my ex-wife of this. To which she replied. “The CSA remains. You know where he lives if you want to see him”.

I’m a broken man and it feels like its a case of rent a child, or something like that.

I thought the CSA were there to act in the best interests of the child.

Not bleed the father dry and leave him with no money left to be able to maintain contact.

I am at a loss what to do. Any advice would be appreciated.

Comments

  • David Darby says:

    Common sense would have said that you continue paying child maintenance whilst they are doing their calculations, not cease them.

  • al says:

    Welcome to our world !
    I had years of the same BS. Eventually left the UK and have a great life in SE Asia, new girl, new job.
    CSA can stick it where the sun shines!
    My advice is basically, if you cant sort this out directly and in a civil manner with your ex then forget it. Only choices you really have are to get out of the country, do some black market trading, or have your ex shot……
    Seriously, I don’t recommend the latter but im sure you get my drift

  • Dave says:

    In the same boat buddy.

    The mother buys stuff for herself and Iceland for kiddies, I can barely afford to live and do all the travelling in a 450 round mile trip to see my daughter.

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