Ex P is on Incapacity Benefit and gives me £5 per week for DD. We are not on the breadline, I work PT but we do not have much spare money and little treats like trips to cinema are few and far between.
I have been aware for some months that Ex P is working on the side, collecting scrap and selling it. I have tried to convince him to go legit and come off benefits but it's like talking to a brick wall. I have considered informing DWP of his activities but haven't come to a decision about that yet.
Several times I have asked him for additional money for DD but none has been forthcoming. I thought he was only making a few quid here and there but just now he showed me a car on ebay he wants to buy and told me he'd nearly saved enough money for it. It cost £1k!!!!
He genuinely thinks I'm AIBU for asking him for money! I think he's AIBU because I think a decent dad would WANT to provide/contribute towards their child's maintenance.
Now I've written this I really want to inform DWP of his fraud. Only thing that stops me is that given he has quite an extensive criminal history (altho not for fraud) he may get a custodial sentence. Whilst I'm not saying he wouldn't deserve it I'm a bit conflicted as to what's in DD's best interests. Also I need to do a bit of snooping and get the details of the van he drives around in collecting scrap.