Child Maintenance

grimreaper

I have my 2 girls 5 nights over a 2 week period. They stay with my ex 7 nights and with the childminder 2 nights over the same 2 weeks. My salary minus pension extra comes to 36970 so I have to pay £490!!! The issue is my partner earns £325,000 plus bonusesa year how can this be fair. My wage after rent and cms payment is less than £1000.

grimreaper

grimreaper said:

I have my 2 girls 5 nights over a 2 week period. They stay with my ex 7 nights and with the childminder 2 nights over the same 2 weeks. My salary minus pension extra comes to 36970 so I have to pay £490!!! The issue is my partner earns £325,000 plus bonusesa year how can this be fair. My wage after rent and cms payment is less than £1000.

Sorry my ex earns 325k not partner 

jjj1980

What your ex earns is irrelevant as the calculation is only based on your earnings, how many children it’s for and how many overnights they have with you.

You would be best using the online calculator to double check the figures as it works out your girls stay with you for approximately 2.5 days per week.  Which at a rough estimate makes the assessment around £350 per month.

once you know the calculation is correct, it may be worth looking your rental cost as from a quick calculation, you are paying around £1k per month in rent alone.

grimreaper

This is for 2 children

childcare works out 

I have them every Tuesday night and alternate weekends which is Friday Saturday Sunday night so over a two week rota I have them 5 nights, she has them 7 nights and childminder 2 nights as she works away 3 days a week. She wouldn’t let me have the kids the night a week they were at childminders she said they’re better there! I book all school holidays off and generally share childcare. 

She did the online calculation and sent it me using 35000 as a reference and it said 332 per month the cms calculated a gross wage of 36970 a difference of 1970 per annum but monthly has jumped by 168 per month to 490 a month??? Online calculator was wayyyy off or cms is???

grimreaper

Also I’ve been paying half the childcare around 500 a month for the past 2 and a half years soon as the bill would drop because my youngest starts school in September she’s filed cms. Her first husband has never paid for his 2 either to cms or the childminder. 

grimreaper

This is calculation she sent 

grimreaper

This is their calculation, why is it so different

jjj1980

I’ve just run the calculation again with the £36,970 as income and it comes out at just over £350pm for 2 children.  Was your income higher during the year that has been used for the assessment by CMS? You should have access to the online CMS portal which will allow you to see the calculation history.  If not, you would need to ring them and check they have the correct income information for you.

i would also check they have the number of nights correct as by changing it to less than one night a week in the calculator, it changes the assessment to £491pm.  You really do need to check the details on the assessment confirmation letter you will have received from CMS as that is the only way you will know the exact details they have used.

grimreaper

My basic is 36000 but there was overtime but I pay 4000 a year towards pension hence why their figure was 36970. 

jjj1980

It looks like they have it down as less than 1 night per week then.  Have you checked Jed the assessment letter/CMS portal to confirm the exact calculation they have made?  That really is your only way forward now.

grimreaper

Haven’t got portal login yet as I need to ring but it’s bank holiday. Letter etc that I’ve received is very vague on terms etc it doesn’t state how long etc I have children