friend's ex wants LESS money - suspicious

barvid

Hope someone who knows more about this than I do can help. A friend's ex has recently stated that she only wants him to pay the legal minimum of 15%, I think it is. At the moment he is voluntarily paying two or three times that amount. The request has been put in writing so is formal. Can anyone think of any reason why she might ask for this reduction? She is not rich but very devious. Thanks.

BeenieCat

Does she work? i.e could it be affecting any benefits or credits?

I can't help, but i think those who can may ask this question

barvid

She does work. I don't know enough to say whether she receives any benefits though. Thank you for replying!

Soubrette

barvid wrote: »

Hope someone who knows more about this than I do can help. A friend's ex has recently stated that she only wants him to pay the legal minimum of 15%, I think it is. At the moment he is voluntarily paying two or three times that amount. The request has been put in writing so is formal. Can anyone think of any reason why she might ask for this reduction? She is not rich but very devious. Thanks.

Perhaps she's worried that if the household income depends to a large extent on your friend, if he were to suddenly reduce it then she would be in trouble.

Perhaps she's concerned that the more money your friend pays, the more say he will expect to have in how she spends it.

Perhaps she believes that morally she is only entitled to the amount decided by a third party and so does not any extra.

Child maintenance payments do not count when applying for tax credit so that doesn't seem very credible.

If it's three times more than the 15% minimum and he's paying three times as much, I assume even 15% is pretty generous so you wouldn't think it would be more worthwhile to claim benefits.

Perhaps she has a 'proud' - partner who doesn't want to feel beholden in any way to your friend.

Lots of plausible reasons really but he would have to ask her.

Why does he want to pay so much extra when he could spend it directly on the child himself, or put money away for the child?

Sou

LizzieS_2

To add to Sou's list, perhaps she is planning on moving in with a new partner - asking for what she will get via the csa is her way of trying to avoid confrontation and your friend forcing the csa in (when she will spend months waiting for cash she possibly cannot afford to go without).

As she is working, there would be no effect to her tax credits, or, if her income is that low no effect to housing benefit either.

Carlos_Miranda

Well there might be some legal complications. You said she was devious earlier. So how can she leave off the extra money that your friend is giving her?
There might be some other bad idea or an advantage to her. Try contacting an advocate, they might know these legalities.

Zara33

Carlos_Miranda wrote: »

Well there might be some legal complications. You said she was devious earlier. So how can she leave off the extra money that your friend is giving her?
There might be some other bad idea or an advantage to her. Try contacting an advocate, they might know these legalities.

She is only really entitled to 15% anything over and above that is a bonus, just because she doesn't want anymore doesn't make her a bad person. In fact it blows the theory of all PWC's are moneygrabbers...

kelloggs36

Perhaps she can cope easily with that amount, and believes that it is a fair amount.

jamespir

perhaps she doesnt want to be greedy like some people

Soubrette

jamespir wrote: »

perhaps she doesnt want to be greedy like some people

James, that is the nicest thing I think I've read from you about a PWC

To add to the mystery, if the friend is paying 15% of net income then there is no way the CSA are going to come after him for more unless she is on benefits and not declaring them (I hope he is paying by a regular means and that it is clearly marked 'child maintenance payments for the benefit of......). If she is on benefits and declaring them then it makes no difference whether she is taking 15% or 45% of his take-home.

Unfortunately I can think of far more dodgy reasons why he wants to give her 45% of his take home rather than her refusing to accept them

Sou

barvid

Thanks all. She's single, with no sign of a partner, and refusing money is very uncharacteristic (previously, the demands have been the other way around), so maybe she really is turning a corner. I was convinced it had to be yet another scheme to mess with him, or maybe for some benefits-related reason. He likes to contribute more than he has to so I guess he'll put it aside into a separate account and work out the best way to ensure the money reaches the kid.