Paying for mistakes made by the CSA
12-March-2010
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Paying for mistakes made by the CSA

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I am an 'Absent Parent' in the eyes of the Child Support Agency.  I guess this is true when I live in Cambridgeshire and she lives in Tyneside.  My ex and I split when I was still serving in the Army and wasn’t prepared to leave before I had served my full 22 years.  The ex remarried 6 days after the decree absolute was finalised – overnight I became 'Old Dad', he became 'Big Dad'.

I have to say he's a nice bloke, it just his wife who I can't stand.  I have been dealing with the CSA since then, paying what they ask regardless of whether I think it is the correct amount, easy life is better than fighting them and running up masses of arrears.

Paying for mistakes

I now no longer serve my country and am no longer earning the same income.  The CSA paid me a visit asking why I hadn't paid for 3 months, I said "How can I pay when I'm not working?"   It wouldn't appear to matter to them.  She took away my last 3 payslips and the latest copy of my mortgage statement.  Meanwhile I crossed my fingers and hoped that I would still be able to afford the nice house my new wife and I had bought three years previously.

Somebody within the CSA couldn’t read...

Unfortunately, somebody within the CSA couldn’t read and typed the wrong address into their system.  I heard nothing until a bailiff popped a demand through my door 12 months later asking for over £4,000.  I had been taken to court without my knowledge and found liable for that amount.

Twelve months further on, I am still fighting what is their mistake, not mine.  I have eventually cleared the amount owing to the bailiffs but now face arrears for the 12 months during which this dispute has taken place. One step forward, feels like 20 or more backward!  Yet again the Child Support Agency make a mistake but somebody else has to pay for it.

When will the Government finally put the useless thing out of its misery?  Probably never, they couldn’t afford the redundancy package for all the staff no doubt!  Hopefully the CSA complaints team will look into this.  I finally spoke to someone in the Agency who was helpful and explained the correct steps to take.

I wait with baited breath for the outcome, although deep down I'm so sceptical about the whole thing that I probably get stung for even more cash than I am already lumbered with.  Here's hoping.

By: Fostered Gaz


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child support agency.s an ass . our law system an ass . another man,s name is on my son,s birth certificate. so he goes by his name , yet I pay child support . , she,d named me as the father and that was that . sought legal advice , will cost me £ 11.000 or more to put this right .
*real dad  09-Mar-2010 08:49

 
Banshee, write her a nice letter asking for rights of access, be creepy to her in the letter, blame yourself for all your problems in the marriage that you had with her, and even be apologetic towards her in the letter, be a right creep@rse, it may get you access,

Then when the child is sixteen years old, you can call your ex-wife all the names under the sun, and not worry about her deciding whether you should have access or not.
*Gainsborough lad.  01-Feb-2010 22:55

 
Should I be expected to pay 251.00 per month for a child my ex-wife will not let me see?
I now have a child with my new marriage and I could really do with this money for them, it's not that I don't want to see my first child it's her mother but upon contacting CSA they want nothing to do with it as long as they receive my payment that's all they are worried about.
If I go to a solicitor it cost me over a thousand pounds to go to court for visiting rights, money which I don't have!
Ha anyone got any advise for me?
*Banshee  01-Feb-2010 22:42

 
Beware, beware, beware. Well now for my incredible story. I have always paid my ex maintenance and all was fine until I couldnt swap a weekend with the kids she then took the huff and got CSA involved because she though the money was now all of a sudden not enough. CSA calculated and I had to pay an extra £50 a month, this was put in writing and calculations shown. I had no problems and paid accordingly however, I recently ask CSA to check on my eldest son and to my suprise for nearly 8 months my ex has been receiving adult denefits for him - shame on her she never told CSA isnt that what your supposed to do!!!!! Unfortunately, the money I have overpaid can not be reclaimed through the CSA because their original letter only SUGGESTED an amount to pay. You can bet your bottom dollar that had I not paid the required amount it would have gone down as arrears or worst still taken on DOE. Call this Justice or fair ? I think not .
*TIGERFEET  30-Jan-2010 15:56

 
"Take away my kids, take away my job, take away my home.... What is left?"

No matter what they take from me, they can't take away my dignity. Because the greatest love of all is happening to me. I found the greatest love of all....

Sorry - that was really too hard to resist! Chin up me old duck :-)
*AOD  28-Jan-2010 21:15

 
How about this one!! The Ex decided the grass was greener on the other side and at first it was amicable - until I stopped paying for her car, credit cards, etc. Next thing, no children on the weekend. On again off again. Now for the woman scorned part - moved my new girlfriend (now my wife) into my house and on the same weekend I was accused of molesting my daughter.

£40 000 in solicitors and barristers and 8 months of mental anguish she finally admits to the judge that she made the accusation to stop me from seeing the kids. The judge was "dissapointed" in her. Next I have to sell the family home. She is the primary carer and got £81k - I got £9k.
Roll forward a number of years during which she has been receiving £400 / month. The CSA change the rules and she goes back for a re-assessment. I am now told to pay her £871 per month. No, No, I cannot pay her directly - she wants a DEO (deductions from earnings order). I state my case to the CSA that this amount of money will prevent me from being able to afford to get to work. I ask whether they still consider my outgoings. Of course not. They only consider children that live with you and council tax. Amazingly they consider council tax on a house that I can no longer pay for. I had to resign from work and rely on my paltry £56 per week from the jobcentre. After all these years of being a responsible parent and tax payer, I am now forced onto the benefit system. Even though the CSA know I am unemployed and registered with jobcentre, thye still maintain that I owe the full amount per month.

Take away my kids, take away my job, take away my home.... What is left?
*bucket5043  28-Jan-2010 18:32

 
Matty, there is obviously something seriously amiss with the Agency at the moment.their systems are worse than ever.Get in touch via letter to your M.P. and ask for copies of all paperwork that makes up your file,including computer generated work from their end.the nicest conversation I have ever had was the one when they told me that they got their facts wrong. I am now going to see what else I can do. although they have finally closed my case. I dont intend to keep quiet as such because of the unfair treatment of me in the past.Giving them as much work as possible is at least some way you can fight them. Cougar
*cougar  11-Jan-2010 13:44

 
I have been dealing with the csa now for 4 years and was on a deo for3 years as I refused to pay as I thought it was wrong for my child to receive 40 pounds of the 200 I was and paying and the rest went to the state. the csa rang me numerous times telling me I had arrears which wasnt possible as I was on a deo not only did they fail to write to me to make me aware of this issue they started bombarding my place of work with calls which nearly got me the sack as I cant use company phones for personal calls. I contacted the csa and made them aware of these problems and they removed the deo for 2 months because 1 day I made a phone call to them and spoke to the most arrogant person I have ever spoke to in my life who totally abused his powers and spoke to me in a patronising way and made his own asuptions that I wasnt willing to pay . I made a complaint about this person as I had evidence him and afriend where making a mockery of me sitting opposite 1 another and decicded to make a complaint only to be told this idiot was experienced at his job ha ha and that the deo was stayin on .this happened right before christmas and caused me and my family serious problems as I have 3 children to my new partner. I dont disagree with having to pay for my son after all its my responsibility but dont see how these people can play with me and my familys lives can anyone help or suggest anything thanks
*mattyamo  10-Jan-2010 16:40

 
re my comments previously.having supposedly owed £730.00 arrears I complained via CSA my M.P. and I asked for copies of all paperwork they have on me via data protection,which they are obliged to do. The outcome? they decided I didnt owe anything but infact they owe me £95.00.
how on earth can that happen.obviously people who have just paid up may never know if they have been treated the same.absolutely incredible state of affairs. they goosed my Christmas although I also admit to having some relief.
*cougar  09-Jan-2010 13:13

 
This agency is an inherently corrupt alliance between Her majestys court services and the Ministry of (in) Justice. They are perverting the course of justice by using Tribunal illegally appointing solicitors as Judges and using public buildings instead of courts in order to impose their will upon those who dare challenge them. There is NO redress in law and gos help any solicitor who even attempts to challenge them by representing a client. The corrupt judges will haul them in for a threat and dressing down. The brief synopsis of my case is that I have had 10 years of dealing with the incompetent amateurs who staff this 'quango' I have just been scammed for thousands in arrears because of their mistakes. Corrupt M.P.'s do NOTHING,as they are stealing from the pot that the parents are filling up by claiming their expenses from OUR money! The CSA and their entourage are treating decent, honest people like scum on the pretext of lifting children out of poverty, when all they are doing is scamming people. My words to them are "what comes around, goes around". There will come a time when an agency, a councillor, an M.P. etc want something from me, my help will not be forthcoming and should ANY of those knock on my door prior to any election I will be calling the police and making a complaint of harassment! In the meantime I think its about time the Serious fraud office investigated the fact that they are acting outside of the law and perverting the course of justice!
*Panther  24-Dec-2009 12:47

 
My "kids" have grown up and both working.since 2003 twice yearly I have received letters from the csa stating I owe 0 and my balance is 0. two weeks ago I got deduction order for £730 arrears. totally out of the blue. Anybody had similair issues?.seems ridiculous to drop this on someone years ,not least because I thought I was up to date and if I did owe that sort of money why didnt they take it there and then.what a dangerous and amateur way of dealing with people.
*cougar  19-Dec-2009 15:31

 
how about this super case. My ex put a claim in 2000 then done nothing about it, while in the mean time I was paying her cash for 5 years then my chld came to live with me and I asked her for money and she laughed. Well heres the fun begins I put a claim in against her and yes I got money off her, well then she remembers about this claim 5 years earlier, after the csa admitted they closed the case in error and going through countless appeals I now pay her £110. per month but the best thing is I gets a data print from csa and they say the forms was sent out in june 2000 but its the only entry is in writting. I know what I think
*Geordie1970  01-Dec-2009 11:56


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