On the poverty line because of CSA

August 7, 2010

My partner had over £9000 of debts with the csa, for a child he didnt know about, and had requested for a DNA test on, which CSA said they never got! My partner started paying the amount they asked for plus arrears every month with no problem at a rate we could just about afford. But the cheek they took into account my wages (we are on the old csa) as they look to see if i can afford to pay the bills, yet i have my own daughter to pay for and i dont recieve anything from her father as he doesnt work.

My daughter has had to go without so we can pay the csa for my partner’s child, wheres the fairness in that? Any way tcsa brought a new rule in where all debts had to be payed back in 2 years and wanted the whole amount, or £150 a week, my partner earns £250 a week, i went to CAB who pushed it down to £83 a week of that only £18 goes to the child. (we also help out with buying the child uniform) We have debts to pay and have really struggled to live due to this, but have coped, just and have got 1 year left to pay the arrears.

Problem is now i am pregnant and am worrying about if we still have to pay the same amount or not once i am on maternity leave as my wages will be a hell of a lot less than what im on now, and i dont know how we will manage if they dont reduce the payments??? Can anyone tell me what csa will do in this case?

I HATE THE CSA, THEY HAVE MADE US STRUGGLE SO MUCH WHEN WE WORK HARD AND THE MOTHER OF THE CHILD DOESNT WORK!

Comments

  • Steve says:

    Unfortunately Sharron the CSA has nothing to do with children or their welfare. This entire system was introduced to rake back even more money from honest Joe public to put money back into the ailing benefits systems. A friend of mine has recently been stung. His wife ran off with a local businessman to Spain and took her two children with her about six years ago. Jeff is a hard working builder and has paid his taxes all his life, yes taxes that go towards paying Child Benefit extra extra. Two years ago he re married and had a little boy. About nine months ago his ex wife returned with her new husband and contacted the CSA for six years of maintenance??? His ex wife lives in a £450,000 house and drives a £29,000 jaguar. The boys go to public school. Yes I bet you can imagine how much Jeff is currently paying the CSA. Two months ago I asked him how he was and he told me that the CSA had taken so much money from him that he couldn’t afford to pay his mortgage so they had lost their house and eventually he’d had to pack in his job because he couldn’t afford the CSA repayments. At the moment Jeff, his new wife and their 18 month old baby are living in temporary accommodation in one of the worst housing estates you could possibly imagine awaiting the local council to re home them. If a man or woman have children they should pay for they’re upkeep no matter whether they are resident or not. However when the CSA are deliberately destroying honest, hard working lives, subjecting honest people to debt because they’re too bloody lazy to analyze the financial situation between two people. Then to my mind we are living in a world that isn’t that far removed from medieval England. What next? Will the CSA cut off a hand or foot if payments are not made. Taxes and taxes on taxes, how much more will they squeeze before people say ‘That’s enough!’

  • Craig Bulman says:

    That is despicable – I am in a very similar situation, just a quick note about the two year repayment that is absolute shite they pulled the same on me however it has come to light that the two year ruling is only a managerial steer so tell them to F OFF

  • graeme says:

    Hi Craig

    That is a nice thought telling them to Foxtrot Oscar to repay back the debt within the alloted 2 year time frame limit.

    When you have a DEO in place and they will not listen to you what chance do you stand. That is my case.

    I cant wait for the day that the whole corrupt bunch of thieving arse holes get sacked. One day I pray that they might even face criminal prosecution from the top of the pile of illiterate assholes (Steven Gerhaty.. right down to the lowest office assistant)… that would really make my day. I really would dance a Highland fling that day.

    Graeme

  • Kelly says:

    The CSA is a complete sham and always has been. My husband has been paying for his son for 13 years and is very happy to do so. However, his money grabbing ex has put in for a new assessment in July 2010 and he is now paying 100.31 a week for one child. The unfairness of it all is that before we had our own 2 children he was pay 90.00 and now we have 2 we are paying more. Where is the loigic in that. Right there is none becasue the CSA do not work with logic. My husband is on the old system which means that they just pluck figures from their heads and half of them dont know how to even add or subtract. We recently wrote to our local MP and he has been very helpful. No one will ever change this system no matter how flawed it is. It seems that the more honest a person is the worst off they are. I must say though we have had constant years of problems with the CSA but I have absolute sympathy for the person that Steve wrote about who is living in temporary accommodation that is despicable it really is!

  • Brian says:

    EVERYONE GET YOUR MP involved!! NO matter what.

    Regardless send them a copy of every letter you send to the CSA. You’ll be amazed how many NRPs together we can get better, improved, group response. Don’t let the MP do nothng! Stand up and get the MP over worked with local CSA cases guaranteed to piss them off and force the issues directly with higher CSA bods..please pass this message on.

    CSA will only take notice if an MP gets pissed off

    Thanks
    Brian

  • Carrie says:

    Three years down the line from here nothing has improved .CSA3 is just starting in certain cases,the age of payment liability has gone up to 20 years of age (from 10/12/2012),the CSA or CMEC or CMO or what ever it is now is encouraging parents to set up their own private arrangements(lets hope they’re written in stone !).The NRP who has paid is being treated like an absent parent because the CSA aren’t looking at the whole picture (the evidence that we have paid) They mistakenly tell the pwc there are arrears on the case and she is going all out to get them.No-one is listening to us!! What a shambles !!
    Please some one at the top take notice !!

  • lisa says:

    CS3 will not come into force yet for any parent unless they have 4 children to the same ex, The CSA honestly care diddly squat for the NRP or his family, it makes me sick that my kids have had to go without to fund a lifestyle that the PWC had taken upon herself to lead at our expense, The CSA tell the PWC anything they want to get her off the phone, they tell lies which eventually leads to contact breaking down between father and children, Personal experience the csa told the pwc that we WOULDT pay not COULDT afford to pay big difference, they didt even recalculate a change in circumstance in our case which lead to arrears that we are now contesting and having to make a huge complaint, I suggest anybody else that’s having these problems do the same before its to late, the new system due to come in next year will charge both parents for using the collection service which is wrong, the CSA are a shambles suppost to be a not for profit organisation, what a load of tosh, they take money keep it in an account to gain interest at the parents expense, the best thing to close the damn place, should be the same amount per child right across the board regardless of income, works abroad, maybe then more men would be able to afford to live instead of worrying where there next meal was coming from

  • Carrie says:

    Yes that’s a good idea charge the same rate for each child (leaving the same for the child in our home!)Then the nrp will have some left to actually take their child out ,provide a decent bedroom for the child to stay in at his own place ) Some nrp ,any good parent really would automatically do this for their child/children with out having it taken from them.I know several pwcs ,friends of mine, who will admit they manage really well having CTC,WTC,CH/Ben ,have to only work 16 hours a week ,get free school, meals,school trips,dentist ,optician,prescriptions & get to keep all the CM from the nrp.They couldn’t believe that you used to have it taken off £ for £ (think you could save £10 a week if you were going back to work soon)of your Income Support pre 2010.A fairer system would be very welcome.All the horror stories on here that you read of …Perhap more nrp’s would pay up willingly then.Why should the nrp be punished when some pwc’s have just walked away from the relationship or cheated with out a thought for the nrp or the chilldren.They know the CSA will ‘be on their side’ when contacted.

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