I'll try and keep it brief! SDD left college in the summer and began working full time in September. She lives with DH's XP. DH contacted CMS in October to let them know the change of circumstances. It was all agreed and logged on the system that she is no longer eligible, however no paperwork came through so DH is still paying (he has been instructed to keep paying until he hears otherwise).
So the CMS have said that the reason for the delay is that child benefit is still being claimed for SDD so effectively computer says no. This is the first problem.
Whilst doing the child benefit check the CMS has now flagged up an issue with DSS who is older. He left college in late 2015 (enrolled but dropped out) and started a paid apprenticeship. The old CSA case was transferred onto the new CMS in early 2016 and DSS was not on the new case (all applied for by the XP). HOWEVER, the XP continued to collect child benefit until December 2017, until just before he turned 20. DSS moved in with a friend at some stage while this was all being claimed!
CMS says technically DH is liable for maintenance whenever child benefit is being claimed, however says that it looks very fishy that the XP did not apply for the maintenance but did claim the benefits (and probably tax credits).
DH's concern was that now the system has flagged this up he would be liable for the period of time where XP persisted in claiming CB. CMS don't seem to have a definitive answer at the moment as the lady said she hasn't encountered it before. She also said the CMS was at fault for not verifying that CB for DSS had been cancelled, but said that was because his name wasn't mentioned by XP when she opened the case.
Has anyone been through this? I thought the onus was on the parent to prove that the child was in education in order to continue to claim CB, but it seems you can just carry on. Reporting to CB office seems to be a route to take, but will cause issues as the XP is adamant she isn't claiming any benefits she's not entitled to!