CSA Letter

DUTR

Following this news article, has anyone recieved their letter yet?
I'm surprised there are 'only' 50000 letters going out.
It will be interesting to see those that cannot agree themselves on a contribution plan, how many do take up the chargeable service.

Darna

Nothing yet but it reads as if they are only starting to send them today, I assume this is to inform people of the change.

Then another letter will appear when it's your turn to be given your 6 months notice of closure

furby-2003

its all well and good but I haven't seen my ex for well over 5 years, i wouldn't know where he worked or where he lived. he's not on facebook. complete mistery! I get £20 once in a blue moon, no more than £200 per year. he owes £13k plus over the last 14 years. Where on earth do i go from there?

PreludeForTimeFeelers

The media story seems a little muddled. My understanding is that the letters going out this week are to clients on 2012 System to let them know collection charging is coming in and that these fees can be avoided by switching to a direct pay agreement.

Case closure for 1993/2003 cases is still later this year so there are no mass mailings about that yet.

DUTR

PreludeForTimeFeelers wrote: »

The media story seems a little muddled. My understanding is that the letters going out this week are to clients on 2012 System to let them know collection charging is coming in and that these fees can be avoided by switching to a direct pay agreement.

Case closure for 1993/2003 cases is still later this year so there are no mass mailings about that yet.

Ah, that makes sense then, as it seemed too few letters going out, it surprised me it was on BBC breakfast,but the story seems to have reached LBC and other sources. All share the same lines
"
Estranged partners providing financial support for their children under the Child Support Agency (CSA) will be reassessed and new maintenance commitments will be calculated using gross income figures rather than take-home pay, as is currently the case. Absent parents (usually fathers) will face a 20pc administration fee, and those looking after children (usually mothers) could have 4pc of their income deducted to pay an administration levy to the Government.

All existing arrangements made under the CSA will be closed and parents asked to reach new agreements. If this proves impossible, the caring partner can pay £20 to apply for a new maintenance order to the new Child Maintenance Service (CMS) agency, which is replacing the CSA.

These new orders will be calculated using HM Revenue & Customs information about the absent father’s gross salary. Once a new figure has been calculated, he can assume responsibility and sidestep further State involvement. His former spouse cannot challenge this decision.

However, if he misses a payment, his former partner can ask for the payments to be deducted from his salary automatically. Not only will he lose control of the payments, but he will be charged an additional 20pc on top. The mother will lose 4pc of her payment in charges."

PreludeForTimeFeelers

The majority of the sites seem to have similar stories, so I'm guessing that DWP have issued a media briefing - it'd be interesting to see the original as there are definite inaccuracies in all of them, and I'd be curious if this was due to a dodgy press brief or whether it was down to media misunderstanding.

PreludeForTimeFeelers

I think that the important thing, that the stories aren't getting across at all, is that the paying parent/NRP can ask for direct pay and the receiving parent/PWC can't refuse this - this is a lot fairer to the NRP than the system was in the past.

AnxiousMum

ahhhhh! Could this be the letter that my ex may have gotten last week? He (apparently...according to my 15 yr old son) got a letter stating that his CSA payments would be increasing from £409 (200 of which is arrears) per month to £571. But that's a big jump.....but if based on 20% charges - that's £80 right there in charges....and the rest could be because of the recalculation based on gross instead of net earnings.

I did call them to ask why there would've beena letter with a higher rate and they couldn;t tell me.....

jjj1980

I'll be furious if I receive such a letter! My case was started with CSA due to the abuse I suffered from my ex and was deemed an unsafe situation to leave me having to deal with him.

I have been told in the past that due to that and the fact that his behaviour has caused the case to spend the majority of time in either Criminal Compliance, Debt Enforcement and currently Legal Enfircement, no charges would be applied to at least my side of the case.

Looks like I will be calling them tomorrow to clarify as no way do I want to be in the risky position of having to deal with this direct with him. Nor is it fair that his behaviour of non-compliance means I would receive less than the assessment, if he pays at all!

PreludeForTimeFeelers

AnxiousMum - nope, that sounds like a new schedule that he's received, these are a series of mass mailings to 2012 clients, initially they're going out to those clients who are paying on time and have no arrears, i.e. those who would be better off paying between themselves.

JJJ1980 - your case is currently with CSA, and will stay there for at least the next few years. The case closure program will begin with those where closing it on CSA would cause the least disruption for the clients - I believe that the first ones to close will be those where the NRP is assessed as having nothing to pay. Even if your case closed and you chose to open a new one on 2012 your ex would only be allowed to request he pay you directly if his payment history showed that he could be compliant, it sounds as though he wouldn't be able to do that.

AnxiousMum

I'm quite sure that I've heard, or read somewhere, that if there is any risk of violence or abuse, (and it's documented?) that you would not be required to deal direct, and I'm sure - no charges for you either. I may be wrong.....but sure I've read that (and...it would be the right thing to have happen!)