Change of circumstances / getting them to answer my questions!!!

vodkaburner_2

Hi, just have two questions regarding CSA:
1. May daughter was living with her adult sister and I was paying csa to her. In December my daughter went back to living with her mum (which I didn't know about). In February I get a letter of CSA telling me that from December I should have been paying CSa to my ex instead of me eldest daughter....so therefore I need to pay the CSA twice. How is it with reporting a change of circumstances? It took my ex two months to ring them and but they still 'backdated' the date when the change happened. Isn't it that if she phoned in February the change is accepted from February?




2. I'm disputing the amount of arrears I need to pay - I asked for a statement and it is different from the amount I calculated using their on guidelines. I wrote to them yet again explaining I didn't agree and explained my reasons why. They then sent me another statement only to find that is different from the first statement that they sent me. I wrote again and asked for a detailed explanation of how they got to the calculations in the statement and why amounts had changed. I'm now at the point where the CSA are phoning me trying to explain but the advisor doesn't have all my letters in front of him to explain fully. I told him I want a written explanation only to be told that they can't/won't do it as they only send out generic letters.
So, how do I get the CSA to listen to my arguments and for them to put it in writing as I have no proof of anything that is said over the phone.


Thanks

CSAworkerx

1) Change of circs come into effect from when we hear about them, are you 100% sure we were not informed prior/during the period your daughter moved? if she said to us im going to live with another person then we were notified and the date is correct, if noone told us then the change should have come into effect from the day we were told, However, We will not simply write a letter telling you to pay X, they must have made an application for maintenance to claim, meaning the case you vs your daughter would be closed, and a new case you vs X needed to open, what i think might have happend is you have an open case allready with your X?

2) you want to dispute the arrears but you do not give your reasons, so i cannot help you there, Whatever you calculated yourself holds no merit as we do the assessments, Tell me your reasons and ill be able to help you more. The whole point about not sending letters is to combat the exact scenario your in, we dont have case ownership, meaning you may talk to me on monday, and never speak to me again, And things get very complicated when cases move from office to office, since if you send 5 letters in, and your case has been moved to 3 different offices ( bare in mind were transitioning to a new scheme, so work is moving all over the place ) i might pick your case up with 0 of those letters, meaning i dont have all the info to give you an answer. my advice is to use the phone, all calls are recorded so they are logged should you need them. You wont get anything in writing as the caseworker is correct, we only send generic letters, not case specific ones, Due to the no owenership of cases, if i open a case and see a CSF375 has been issued, i know what that means and i know what that letter says, if i opened a case and saw "issued a letter to X" i have no idea what it said.

pm me if you want further help. or post here.

HoneyNutLoop

vodkaburner wrote: »

Hi, just have two questions regarding CSA:
1. May daughter was living with her adult sister and I was paying csa to her. In December my daughter went back to living with her mum (which I didn't know about). In February I get a letter of CSA telling me that from December I should have been paying CSa to my ex instead of me eldest daughter....so therefore I need to pay the CSA twice. How is it with reporting a change of circumstances? It took my ex two months to ring them and but they still 'backdated' the date when the change happened. Isn't it that if she phoned in February the change is accepted from February?

Thanks

Hi, if your ex applied within 8 weeks of your daughter moving back in with her, from your eldest daughter's house, then the new case with your ex would be opened from the day after the case with your eldest daughter closed.

This is a special rule for situations when a child moves from a parent to a guardians house, or vice versa, to ensure there is no break in maintenance for the child.

It's Child Support (Maintenance Calculation Procedures) Regulations 2000 Regulation 29(a) which states:
"Effective dates of maintenance calculations in specified cases

29. Where an application for a maintenance calculation is made under section 4 or 7 of the Act, or treated as made under section 6(3) of the Act—

(a)except where the parent with care has made a request under section 6(5) of the Act, where in the period of 8 weeks immediately preceding the date the application is made, or treated as made under regulation 3, there has been in force a maintenance calculation in respect of the same non-resident parent and child but a different person with care, the effective date of the maintenance calculation made in respect of the application shall be the day following the day on which the previous maintenance calculation ceased to have effect;"

You shouldn't get charged for the same period twice though, unless you were paying your eldest daughter directly under a maintenance direct arrangement? In which case you would then have to sort out any overpayment directly with your eldest daughter.