I want press coverage for my unique and appalling story

March 20, 2015

My case is unique in that I have had the “official error” accepted yet recompense has been a poultry £200.

My case commenced in Aug 2009 and it still hasn’t been resolved. The CSA contacted me to say PWC had requested maintenance. I had just given my ex £105,000 two years before as a full and final settlement although the agreement did not preclude maintenance which as evidenced at the time of the apporach I was providing to the sum of £524 for a school trip

Unbeknown to me the CSA approached my accountants and acquired financial information. On the back of this I received a liability order calculation with a £113 adjustment.

Not until I took my complaint to ICE that the CSA advised that the adjustment was in respect of a dividend.

I said the monies I took out of the business for the settlement was deferred as a Director’s loan in 2008 but was declared as a Dividend in July 2009.

I made the point that how could I be assessessed on the very money I had passed over to the PWC to have this included as part of the assessment – it represented a double whammy.

I also provided financial statement showing that I was insolvent to the value of over £100,000

I raised a complaint with ICE who took a year to investigate. They concluded that the assessment was correctly caluclated, that the CSA did have the right to disregard my Final Settlement agreement, that the £524 payment as a school trip did not constitute a payment in lieu of mainntenance because the PWC had stated this was not the case and the liability end date was on-going despite providing evidence that my son had been working for a year. They also said they had no evidence that I had no income despite the financial bank statements that clearly confirmed this

The CSA then took me to Magistrates Court. First two hearing were adjourned and I was instructed to appoint a solicitor for the third otherwise the magistrate would apply the liability order without further delay. I clearly ould not afford a solicitor but I could not afford to lose the case.

Third hearing the CSA adjourned the hearing as they investigated the liability end date. It is confirmed that PWC had been fraudulently claining child benefit for over a year which fpr some random reason is what determines the liability end date. The PWC advises child benefit should have stopped in December 2010 as per a court paper submission, the child benefit office determines it as February 2011. My liability order reduces from £12,000 to £9,000

I also sought legal advice that aconfirmed that for the dividend to be included in the variation, permission (verbal or written)was required from the PWC.

At the start of the case I had requested disclosure of all information and I knew no request had been received or given from the PWC. I write to the Director General (Shanahan) as does my MP as does my solcititor to advise the variation is contrary to the ACT.

The CSA write to my solicitor stating that the Agency does have the right to raise their own variation without any consent from the PWC. The same enformcement officer (Tully) later states before the 4th court hearing that she acknowledges permission had to be given, but the CSA would not disclose this information because of data protection

Tully acknowledges that she is now aware of their official error in her letter ahead of the 4th hearing. But at the 4th hearing the CSA Barrister pulls me into an anti room and tells me the CSA is draconian. If I did not accept the liability order he would ensure I endured the full weight of the Acts substantial powers.

The Barrister misleads the magistrates
by stating that the variation was in accordance with the ACT and this was independantly endorsed by ICE. The payment in lieu of maintenance is also rejected as is the liability end date

Within 6 weeks of the laibility end date being granted I have received over 16 letters including a DOE and two court letters threatening recovery action. Working in the financial services this now threatens my employment.

My solicitor lodges a tribunal appeal. On the lead up to the Tribunal the CSA state they could not replicate the calculation and that they had neither written or vebal instruction to raise a variation. However, the burdon of proof to prove that such a conversation never took place was down to me. Utterly crazy

The Tribunal found in my favour in under 90 seconds and was damning about the CSA. At this stage, setting aside the immense stress this has caused me my legal fees were at £17,000 which when you take into consideration the original value of the wrongly applied variation calculation plus the determination the CSA applied to fight the case, is not to my mind excessive.

Under the SPG I asked to be returned to the financial position I would have been in had it not beeen for the official error. The CSA offered £200

I raised a complaint with the ICE who refused to look at this new issue which was maladministration. I submitted the financials that proved I had no income and was insolvement, I repeatedly requested evidence relating to the instruction from the PWC in respect of the £524 not being in lieu of maintenance when I had an e-mail from the PWC which I repeatedly shared showing it had been requested

As ICE didn’t engage my MP supported my Ombudsman complaint. The Ombudsman stated they would only look at the process and not the actual complaint and their initial findings were ludicrous. More expense, more stress, the Ombudsman has relooked at the complaint and concluded that even had the ICE investigated my second complaint, which was an official error, they would not have upheld it.

I am now preparing for a judicial review. I am having counselling for High Anxiety and depression and I am finding this a tough gig.

I want to share this story. I want press coverage, and I genuinely believe that my case is so appauling (and if I shared the detail you would see this)that a public enquiry is desperately needed

However, what is also important to communicate is that many NRP will be subject to an adjustment. This requires a variation and I beleive there are thousands of NRP who have had a variation applied that is contrary to the ACT. Under the FOI I have requested the CSA for disclosure. Today is their last day to respond…..and Quel surprise I have had nothing back

Happy to meet anywhere as I genuinely want my story to be told

Please contact me. I want this story in every paper as what has been allowed to happen to me should never be allowed to happen to anyone

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