CSA V The Courts

sop33hia

I have just been told by CSA that my three children are worth £15 per week! I initially gave them detail of my estranged husbands two jobs and tehy have just acted upon one but this was an existing claim as he has an older daughter. They have calculated his net income as £133 per week. I have his P60 and this shows he earnt £18,000 last year his permanant contract he signed back in 2000 states he earns £15,000. I don't know how they have arrived at this figure?
In the mean while i have built up mortagage arraers electricity arraers you name it i owe and teh £15 doesn't even pay for all 3 school dinners.
I have contacted my MP and also lodged a complaint because they have just assessed his first job as that is easy although tehy took 10 weeks to do this for an existing claim but just to tick a box to say they have awarded me a payment within the 12 weeks. They have based calculations on the one job and told me they will reassess the claim again which will take up to 12 weeks again so i have lodged a complaint because they are just trying to be clever and to find out about both jobs and get me teh correct amont would result in them going over 12 weeks.
In addtion i have booked an apoinment with CAB to get my divorce rolling however as i'm a student i just wondered are the kids better of having a judge making an award of maintaince as part of the divorce and although i own my flat which was purchased before the marriage are there other things i can get the judge to take into consideration because this guy has gone on to have 3 more children and i'm already thinking ahead because any claim i have will have to be divvied up with any more children and i don't want this as if he cannot afford his existing children he should not be having more. He has more options then me in term sof bettering himself getting over time and second job and i cant because who will look after the and if i pay i might as well not bother as it cancels out over time.
I really need advise as i'm fed up of paying for his other children and i didn't even have teh joy of making them!
P.S
Why do CSA only calculate his net and give me £15 but when i go to WFTC they calculate of my gross? How can a woman working part time be expected to make up the shortfall of a man working full time?
Sorry about the spelling i'm dyslexic and i have taken time out from my essay to write this!

Kimitatsu

Firstly I appreciate you are frustrated but all of his children deserve to be cared for not just the ones that you have. They may not be your children but neither are you paying for them - presumably their mothers are paying for them, and getting less than you.

The courts will not overule the CSA- all jurisdiction regarding child maintenance is now in the hands of the CSA, even if you got an agreement (which would be highly unlikely) then the CSA would take it back to court and get it overuled on the basis he has other children and if any other PWC now makes a claim then all of them will be transferred over to CS2. 25% of his net income will then be divided between all of the children, so in reality you will get less than the £15 you are currently getting.

If you are not divorced then the CAB cannot help, you either need to go to the courts and get the relevant documentation or see a solicitor to get the ball rolling. As you own your own property, unless he has a claim on it or has property of his own then I would strongly suggest that a no fault divorce and a clean break would be the best where you both walk away from the marriage as you are now, that way he will have no claim on your property.

Any arrears or debt that you have built up in the time you are seperated are not his problem, they are yours and you need to address them, the CAB could help you with this, or you could have a look on the old style moneysaving board, lots of great ideas there.

If you have a complaint with the CSA then you need to follow the complaints procedure and ask for a breakdown of the calculation, as youa re assessed under CS1 all of his housing costs will be taken into account and the first £100 a week is protected income (thinks its that figure but Kellogs will be along soon to correct it!) so thats how they get to that figure. Unless you have gone through the complaints proceedure though your MP cannot help as you have not followed the process.

I am not even going to address the last comment about men and women :rolleyes: regardless of your sex the pay differential should be minimal, and as you have chosen to be a student there are some on here who would argue you are bettering yourself. Have you checked on www.entitledto.co.uk to ensure you are getting everything you can claim? Also many colleges run a hardship fund for those in financial difficulties.

Hope this helps :cool:

Blob

Just one point with the advent of the CSA thee is no such thing as a 'Clean Break' divorce they killed that off with many other things that worked well for years!! A step forward I think not!!!

As for the rest if this guy has had children with you and then 3 others before or after you dont say, it is odds on that there will be others to come so whent he CSA get involved then the money for all of them will go down as the money has to be split between all of them and not just yours! As for the Courts as has been said they have no juristiction in these matters any more!

Best of luck.

kelloggs36

you can't have a clean break from your children can you?

Kimitatsu

No what I meant was a clean break divorce not a clean break from her children (or him from the children!). Sorry it was phrased badly! My concern was that he would try to make a claim on her property, the CSA would have jurisdiction over the CM, but the divorce was a seperate issue.

:beer:

Blob

With the CSA about to try to skin him alive and leave him with next to nothing to live on, I would have though that he would go for everything he could as he has nothing what so ever to loos by going any other way. It is the way the system makes people, it is onesided and out to destroy people and second family units!