CSA payment system changing .. please help and advise

clearingout

this thing about not charging if you're a victim of domestic violence. I have a few questions:
- does this work both ways - ie. if a male NRP is a victim and is forced to use the CSA for whatever reason, is he going to be charged the upfront fee?
- are the victims of domestic violence also exempt from the 7 - 12% on-going charge or is it just the upfront fee (on the basis that they presumably fled the family home with nothing at all?)
- if victims of domestic violence are not going to be charged the - 12%, what is to stop me making up stories of domestic abuse and sobbing down the phone to the CSA? Is police involvement going to be a prerequisite of being able to claim this concession?

I don't expect anyone has any answers. I was just wondering...

mrsspendalot

clearingout wrote: »

- if victims of domestic violence are not going to be charged the - 12%, what is to stop me making up stories of domestic abuse and sobbing down the phone to the CSA? Is police involvement going to be a prerequisite of being able to claim this concession?

I don't expect anyone has any answers. I was just wondering...

This is what has me wondering too .... and not all DV is physical either, what if it was emotional abuse?

My ex had me up against a wall with his fist in my face, but never actually hit me. Still scared the living !!!! out of me though because I thought I was going to get beaten black and blue. It ended our marriage. Would that constitute DV? I can't prove it. It's going to be a tricky one ....

clearingout

mrsspendalot wrote: »

This is what has me wondering too .... and not all DV is physical either, what if it was emotional abuse?

My ex had me up against a wall with his fist in my face, but never actually hit me. Still scared the living !!!! out of me though because I thought I was going to get beaten black and blue. It ended our marriage. Would that constitute DV? I can't prove it. It's going to be a tricky one ....

Yep! I can't complain of ever being hit in marriage, but I was during our separation and subjected to a barrage of bullying and abuse for many, many months. I did involve the police after one particularly nasty incident in a car park where I was threatened by both him and his girlfriend but they were never prosecuted or warned. I have no idea how the CSA is going to be able to effectively define domestic violence in these situations but I can only assume that they will have very tight boundaries on it and it will only apply to women who have documented abuse with hospitals and the police and/or have had their ex successfully charged, warned or prosecuted.

Marisco

That seems the obvious way to do it clearingout, otherwise there is nothing stopping anyone accusing the other of DV, be it NRP or PWC.

mrsspendalot

Marisco wrote: »

That seems the obvious way to do it clearingout, otherwise there is nothing stopping anyone accusing the other of DV, be it NRP or PWC.

.... which is a shame for all the genuine sufferers who were too fearful to have their exes prosecuted for fear of even worse violence or abuse as a result ....

I agree though, they are going to have to have some criteria to go by or it will be unworkable. Guess we'll just have to wait and see.

fannyanna

To me the only logical way is for the CSA to see evidence of a conviction.

Unless the person has been proved guilty by a court of law it should be considered hearsay.

I know that will have an adverse impact on some genuine victims but it will stop spiteful exes being able to manipulate the system.

clearingout

I think it has to stop short of conviction - many women flee for their lives without a conviction and of course, a conviction can take months to achieve anyway. I think (not sure), mrspendalot, that the Police can go for prosecution without the need for the victim to agree to it - this is a fairly (as in last 10 years) recent change but I might be wrong (maybe it was just up for discussion/consultation?). I was assuming that not charging a victim of abuse was about the need to obtain money for them quickly and of course, there are plentiful cases of people walking away with just the clothes on their backs. It is these people who would struggle to find an up front fee but who really need maintenance immediately, I guess. My thinking/guessing could be wrong, of course.

fannyanna

But then how could you police it?

Unless there's a conviction (which like you said someone can be convicted even if the victim doesn't give evidence) where's the proof?

I really do understand the concerns that you've raised though about getting to the conviction stage.

DX2

Another stupid idea that they (CSA) haven't thought out properly.

skibadee

As a NRP (not is choice by the way!! )...my OH has been paying maintenance through the CSA for 10 years.
Will he now have to pay a fee to carry on doing this?