Has anyone else’s child maintenance payments stopped due to overpayment?

[MrsCherryCrest]

My ex won’t pay a penny more than the child maintenance service tell him to. Last July, he became ill and was signed off work. He told CMS immediately but they made an error and didn’t recalculate his payments (£220 per month for two children) until December when I got a text the week before Christmas to say I’d be getting zero going forward.

I’ve been told he’d overpaid me last year so I’m not even qualified to get the minimum £9.50 per week while he’s not working. If his income doesn’t change, I’ll get nothing towards the care of our children all year. We don’t speak because he abused me.

I’m so angry and upset that the CMS are sanctioning a man paying nothing towards his children. He lives with his parents, pays no bills, has no responsibilities and chooses to barely see our children. Every spare penny he has goes on cigarettes, alcohol and gambling.

I’ve complained and been told this is government policy per “Regulation 8 of the Child Support (Management of Payments and Arrears) Regulations 2009”.

I feel helpless and don’t know where to go from here. Has anyone else been in this position? This regulation needs to be changed because it’s not right that a person can go months/years without paying any childcare.

Hi OP, sorry you’re in this situation.

Unfortunately they are right, he has essentially already paid you for this period of time because due to their mistake he was paying more than he had to, so he doesn’t have to continue making payments now as he has ultimately paid you in advance.

He has overpaid, so the options would be either that you have to pay back the amount or he doesn’t have to pay until he’s essentially brought up to date.

Don’t close the claim though because eventually the time he’s “pre paid” for runs out and he will have to pay again.

Thank you for your reply @Mrsttcno1. I have cried and cried over this. He continues to make my life harder despite me having left him six years ago. There’s never any negative consequence to him for his shitty behaviour. I have always worked but money is tight and I regularly sacrifice for my children.

Surely the CMS regulations can be changed so a parent is always required to make a minimal monthly payment regardless of what’s happened before? I can see newspaper articles from October 2023 saying “Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride has revealed the Child Maintenance Service will be able to process liability orders for parents who don’t pay up, rather than going through the courts.” in order to force deadbeat dads to pay up, including being able to take funds from a joint account which they can’t currently do.

I know it is so frustrating, but technically he HAS made the minimum payment, he just made it between July-Dec rather than right now.

It is utterly rubbish, dad’s are allowed to get away with absolute murder I really feel for you x

“Surely the CMS regulations can be changed so a parent is always required to make a minimal monthly payment regardless of what’s happened before?”

but if he’s already paid and overpaid you then really not a lot can be done. I think morally he should still contribute so the kids don’t suffer but a lot of dads aren’t prepared to do that. It’s better that you receive £0 for a period of time than having to pay it all back to continue to receive payments. Leave the claim open because when it gets to the amount where he has no longer overpaid he will have to start paying again

The CMS system is broken and corrupt. My experience is that they actively allow abuse to continue and allow non paying fathers to play games and get away with making their kids lives hell.