Newly exH rowing financially abuse and not paying any maintenance- any experience?

[RomaTherapy]

I have a solicitor- we put together a proposal for interim maintenance- he sent me a personal email telling me I was wasting my money on a solicitor as they knew nothing about divorce and finances anyway (yes he gaslit me throughout our shitty marriage- and thinks I will listen)

Because I didn’t listen he’s now punishing me and the children by-

Taking control of the joint bank account and leaving it at zero and taking off the overdraft
Paying only the DDs in the JA after they’ve bounced
Not paying a penny towards any living expenses- he’s only paying for stuff he put in his name as he doesn’t want his credit rating to suffer (I have a small pt job that just about covers food and petrol for me and the dc)
Not replying to my solicitors letters re the maintenance-

Solicitor us said we can apply to court for an emergency iO but that’s likely to cost me £7k

He also says that H is behaving despicabley and it won’t look good for him long term when this goes to court.

Hand hold please

I have created a new bank account but I’ve discovered I’m not eligible for any benefits other than CB so I’m living off a credit card and wondering when I’ll have to go to a food bank

I'm sorry that you're going through this. Divorce is hard enough without them making it harder!
If you're only working a part time job then you should be entitled to Universal credit- even if it's just the personal and child element. If I were you I'd try apply and see what they would say. Not sure why they would decline?
I hope you manage to get it sorted. Horrid situation. I hope it gets resolved quickly and you can start to have a happier life

Yes. My ex stopped working once he realised CSA is more than he thought. He’s not worked for 16 years.

He emptied the joint accounts and childrens’ accounts within a week of my leaving him and cashed in their premium bonds.

Unfortunately, in divorce you don’t really get penalised for bad behaviour.

@Hen2018 really? It’s very tempting to start selling all his shit I’ve spent years cleaning around (he’s a hoarder) you know, if it doesn’t matter

My thre dc need new uniform and shoes!

Three

It's community property so you could

Thanks going to spend tomorrow listing the better stuff on eBay-