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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To think CSA should leave our tax credits alone.

94 replies

santascupcakes · 08/01/2011 18:07

Dh lost his job and he was previously paying £60 via CSA a week to ex.

Told CSA and they asked about our tax credits. I work and we get £198 which includes tax credits for 4 children, working tax and disability element for 2 children.

They said thats OK you can now pay us £27 a week!! Shock

How is that right. She must get her own tax credits!!

OP posts:
onadietcokebreak · 08/01/2011 21:32

You need to speak to cab as I do think the assessment is wrong.

gaelicsheep · 08/01/2011 21:40

It is not fair because the OP's tax credits are to support the children in her own family. But it has always been this way. Win win for the parent with care.

I can't be bothered to read the rest of the thread, which is undoubtdely filled with the usual irrelevant vitriol about women who marry a man with kids having no right to kids of their own. Yawn.

IveStillGotIt · 08/01/2011 23:52

YANBU. It pisses me off how greedy bitches can steal money off of other peoples kids for their own, my friend was in a similar situation to you. I say WAS because she ended up slitting up with her partner, because of the money grabbing cow ex.

My DF has three children of her own, works full time, minimum wage, so she was in receipt of maximum CTC, about £30 WTC and she also received 80% of her childcare. She had a boyfriend, who lived with his mother, and received income-based JSA, out of which he paid £5 to his ex for his child, she has three children, her two eldest are to someone else. However, his mother threw him out, so my DF said he could move in with her (which myself and the rest of our group of friends were worried about, as unlike your DH, who wants to work, this man is a waste of space, hence his own mother had enough of him).
As a result of him moving in, he lost his entitlement to income-based JSA, due to my DF working, and DF lost her 80% childcare, however her WTC and CTC stayed the same, due to him having no income, as his previous claim to JSA was not counted as income for tax credits, due to it being 'income based'.
So DF's DP looked after her DC's while she worked and the money she saved (the 20% of her previous childcare costs that she had to pay herself) she gave to him as 'pocket money' and he continued to pay his ex the £5 that had previously been taken from his JSA.
Greedy money grabber found out that DF had three DC'S, so asked the CSA to re-calculate her maintenance, and DF'S CTC that she received for HER three DC'S was taking into account, her WTC was not counted as DF was the person working, and greedy cow was awarded £20-odd a week, even though DF'S DP had no income, but because his name was on DF'S TC claim, DF had to take money from her OWN DC'S which was paid into HER bank account to pay this bitch.
And before you all start flaming me for being so nasty about the ex, I would like to point out she is in no way impoverished. She is on income support, gets her FULL RENT and COUNCIL TAX paid, gets the same as my DF in CTC and CB, and also gets a good amount of maintenance from the father of her first two DC'S, which she gets to keep to herself as maintenance is no longer taking into account for IS purposes. Her DC'S have the latest trainers, computer games e.t.c she has spray tans, hair extensions the full works, is in the pub every Fri/Sat night, she is basically your typical 'Jeremy Kyle' type.
As a result of her stealing this money from my DF'S DC'S, my DF ended up in the shit as her budget was affected (and she had to pay FULL RENT and COUNCIL TAX, something the money grabber didn't have to do) and it caused a lot of arguments between DF and her DP, and they ended up splitting (much to myself and the rest of our friends relief, as he was just a waste of space 'cock- lodger').
It is not fair that people like my DF's and the OP'S DC'S should suffer due to money grabbing ex'es.
If your all wondering how I know so much about the ex'es circumstances, my DP is good friends with the father of her first two DC'S, who is a decent hard working man who pays his way, unlike DF'S now ex DP.

StewieGriffinsMom · 08/01/2011 23:58

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

gaelicsheep · 08/01/2011 23:58

Yep, that pretty much sums it up.

gaelicsheep · 09/01/2011 00:01

That was in response to I'veStillGotIt. The CSA should not take into account money received for other children. It is robbing Peter to pay Paul and it is morally wrong.

curlymama · 09/01/2011 00:52

The other child still needs to be supported, and you should not begrudge that child. Or do you think it's the taxpayers job to support your step child even though you work. You married a man with a child.

I can see that the system is screwed, but for now it's the only one we have. You should not have had four children if tax credits make up such a big part of your income. Even at £60 a week you DH was hardly contributing 50% of what it costs to bring up his child.

santascupcakes · 09/01/2011 08:56

Curlymama, please read the thread. We did not know about this child until after 3 of our children were born and we have not always claimed tax credits at this rate.

Ivestillgotit, That is exactly what they have done to us. We had been married 3 years and had 3 kids before we even found out about this child. The child was 7 and mother thinks that we would upset her life if we tried to get to know her as she calls someone else dad. Yet she is happy to take from my kids to pay for her.

OP posts:
onadietcokebreak · 09/01/2011 09:08

Curlymama- people don't always start off having children on tax credits - sometimes life deals you a blow and you end up on it.

OP are you going to appeal? Contact MP ? This is very unfair IF correct. DP needs to claim JSA too

purepurple · 09/01/2011 09:21

I think the whole CSA is a waste of time. One of the managers who works for the CSA recently got an MBE in the new years honours list. For doing her job apparently Hmm. Everyone else gets the threat of redundancy hanging over their heads.

curlymama · 09/01/2011 20:14

Fair enough, but I stand by my comment. She is not taking money from your kids to pay for herself! That is the attitude that I find wrong. She just wants the man she produced a child with to contribute to the cost of raising it. What's wrong with that? If the CSA have made a cock up, then look into it and get it rectified. But stop making out that your children are paying for her child.

gaelicsheep · 09/01/2011 20:21

But the man isn't paying is he, that's the point - he can't. His DW and DCs are paying and that's what sticks in the throat. And you'd have to be earning a huge amount to not receive substantial amounts of TCs for 4 children.

curlymama · 09/01/2011 20:30

If it's coming out of tax credits, the government/taxpayers are paying.

He can't? Well someone has to, the child still needs to be fed and clothed. Op's step child deserves as much as her own children. Presumably the ex is already paying more than £27 a week to look after her child.

gaelicsheep · 09/01/2011 20:35

So the ex's kid gets 2 sets of tax credits and the OP's children lose some of theirs. Please exlain how that is acceptable.

lovelyopaque · 09/01/2011 20:42

How was the ex supporting the child before she told the OP's DH about the child's existence? I think if the ex has robbed the father of the chance to be a part of the child's life, then it is a bit much to suddenly say "btw you have a 7yo, give me some money, but you can't see him/her"

mjovertherainbow · 09/01/2011 20:57

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

santascupcakes · 10/01/2011 11:54

overtherainbow,
The system is more than a little unhinged to say the least.

We are phoning the CSA today to find out if the court costs can be taken into account. We now have to seriously consider our route now that DH has lost his job.

We also had to pay a substansial amount for court approved DNA testing which CSA said was down to us. I do not see we had any choice at the time considering the child was already 7 when we found out about her.

The longer this goes on the more I worry about the damage this will do to the child since we have NEVER met her.

OP posts:
xfirsttimemummyx · 10/01/2011 12:09

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Takeresponsibility · 10/01/2011 12:19

All this moralising on what isw right and wrong is not getting the OP anywhere.

Santa:

You need to go to the CAB and get them to run a benefits check for you.

I suspect the CSAs assessment is wrong. They will take some of your tax credits into account but I would query the figure, plus your husband is actively seeking work therefore he is entitled the contribution based JSA for up to six months (unless he wasn't working or was S/E in the relevant tax year). Also make sure you have checked with your local council thjat you are paying the right amount of council tax. A reduction can be applied if disabled people are redident and need extra rooms or wheelchair access.

Good Luck

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