keeping a record ?

DGJsaver

Hi All

Some advice please

I pay cash to my Sons mum monthly , we have never been together , it was o one night stand 13 years ago !
We have recently fell out , how do I pay the money and document it in a way that will stand up to show anyone that I am paying for my child ?


Cheers

Donedoingdebt

The best way would be a Standing Order from your bank straight to your ex's bank account.
This SO should be clearly marked so that it shows up on your statements/records as "Child Maintenance paid to ........(Ex's name) for ..........(Child's name)"

If your ex will not give you her bank details, then write her out a cheque with the above details written on the back & INSIST on getting a receipt from her, which again clearly states that this payment is being received as child maintenance for ........(Child's name).

If she refuses to provide this evidence, then personally, I'd say "No receipt - no money".

This may sound petty, but make sure that the word "Child" is written before "maintenance". Otherwise, the payments may be misconstrued as spousal maintenance. This has to be water tight to stop the CSA trying to say you haven't been paying, should they ever become involved.

If all else fails, you can always call in the CSA yourself & let them assess you, should you wish. Make sure you keep putting away what you would anticipate will be your assessment amount (15% of your net pay) to avoid building up arrears.

KEEP COPIES OF EVERYTHING.

confused!_13

as above poster states.. you MUST get either a standing order set up or a receipt signed by her. Do you know what you would pay via the CSA calculator? If it is there or thereabouts i would get onto them and get them to do it - goodness...never thought i would say that!

pd001

DGJsaver wrote: »

Hi All
Some advice please
I pay cash to my Sons mum monthly , we have never been together , it was o one night stand 13 years ago !
We have recently fell out , how do I pay the money and document it in a way that will stand up to show anyone that I am paying for my child ?
Cheers

Paying cash to your sons will probably not be acceptable to the csa, if they ever become involved, as proper child maintenance

You need to properly document any payments that you do make.

By that I mean you should make sure that there cannot be any misunderstanding what the payments are actually for in the future.

You should do more than just cross a cheque.....you should also
send a letter with each payment that you make, to the effect that the payment is specifically made to support your child (ren).


edit...You should also name the child (ren) that the payment is for.
edit...The letter has to state that the money is for child maintenance and it must also stipulate for what period

Postal orders will suffice provided that you keep the stub, DO NOT LOSE THEM!
Ensure that it has the correct name in the payee section. Ensure that you cross the order or make sure that it is crossed when you buy it. If you dont cross it then it can be cashed and is much more difficult to trace in the future. Dont forget to send a letter with the postal order as I have specified above.....and again...very important indeed...
DO NOT make cash payments!

If you make payments through a bank, then I would advise that each time a payment is taken from your account, then you also send the letter as detailed above, to the PWC.

Keep copies of these letters, DO NOT LOSE THEM!
Make sure that each letter is dated with the same date that is on the cheque.
DO NOT make cash payments!


Thanks to kelloggs36 who posts on here for some of the above information

DUTR

DGJsaver wrote: »

Hi All

Some advice please

I pay cash to my Sons mum monthly , we have never been together , it was o one night stand 13 years ago !
We have recently fell out , how do I pay the money and document it in a way that will stand up to show anyone that I am paying for my child ?


Cheers

If you are sure there is no going back and it was not just a tiff, then I would personally pay via the csa (assuming the child is definitly yours (and I don't mean that rudely)) .
Contact and access is a seperate issue to be wary of. Good luck.

Cozworth806

If you aren't using the CSA already (You don't mention it in your OP) then you don't have to as any liability starts from when/if they first contact you

iluvfreebies

Hi OP - i'm assuming that you do want to continue to make payments for the upkeep of your son? If that is the case then the only way i would recommend ia by setting up a standing order that states all the information entered earlier

As the arrangement you had was a private one legally you have no obligation to continue with this arrangement - If this is an angle you wish to go down then you can stop making payments until she goes to the csa and they contact you. i would advise you to keep money aside for if this happens though to clear any arrears when an assessment is made

Another option you have would be to make an application to pay maintenance through the agency to keep everything official.

HTH