Child Maintenance Service - fuck that for a laugh!

[Nothavingfunrightnow]

I have tried umpteen dozen times to get through on the phone number provided on the website (0345 2668792) and on the website using my correct log in info, but to no avail. The phone just rings out and the log in page goes nowhere.

I will be over the moon if someone could give me the correct phone number if the above one is wrong (please), and I would be delighted if someone could convince me that IABU in saying that that the system is crap and fails every parent requiring maintenance to be paid and every child who has a resident parent dependent on the paying of FAIR maintenance.

Help, please. How am I supposed to get hold of a human being at CMS to attend to my query?

That's the phone number on the top of my recent letter from them.

It's changed to an 0800 number, hang on and I'll check my phone for it.

08001712345

Yanbu they are useless, so useless I gave up as they never managed to get my ex to contribute a penny towards his kids,therefore I dont have their number stored.
Sorry you are having a shit time trying to use a service thats supposed to help you. The child maintenance service fails too many children.

I have that number, and also the same number but 8 at the end instead of 2- worth a try? I'm afraid I've always had problems with the site.

Yes, I agree they are useless. Complain, get your MP involved and escalate the complaint as high as you can. It might not get you anywhere, but it's a lot more likely to than letting them get on with it without chasing them- your case will sit for months at a time awaiting action.

The 0800 number listed above it the correct one. No idea why they’re still issuing letters with the old one on.

And yes they are useless. I’ve been waiting for an attachments for earnings order to go through and receive the correct maintenance since June

Oh yes Ive had this.. letters with the wrong number on. its a joke tbh

Oh, yes I forgot they changed numbers! It's bizarre,as it still has the old number on all letters (I've had them as recent as last week) and when they call it still sometimes comes up as the old number, depending which department it is, but it justs asks you to call back another number.

@mishfish me too...except it was about June 2004 If you think they are delaying, send your local MP a letter. They still make mistakes, but the rules are that they have to respond to MPs within 2 weeks, where as there are generally no consequences if they ignore us customers for months or years on end.

@knobjockey

Even if you use the correct phone number op, on busy days it will ring out and divert to another office when you generally get pissed off Brian in Belfast. Do not despair however, he eventually emails the correct department who then dont ring you back.

To the poster who has only waited since June, I told them on 2 January this year about a change of employment for my gs's dad and guess what? I have still got no more money despite it going to the Financial Investigation Team who found he was earning DOUBLE what he had stated. He now pays nothing. He has arrears of £2,500 which I receive undoubtedly after my death as I am in my fifties.

Persistence is the order of the day. However, if you complain it slows matters down as they do not deal with other issues whilst a complaint remains outstanding.

Try being annoying and ringing regularly rather than going to your MP, who they will ignore.

As for the client website, they do not respond to this. But you can check your lack of progress online - when you type in your reference no it will tell you it is wrong. Just type it in again as there seems to be some kind of blip in the system. The whole system that is.

Good luck. Hope you have more than me.

Thanks so much, everyone. I have no doubt that if child maintenance was an issue that more men than women had to contend with, then the "system", such as it is, would work.

For those of you who are at your wit's end or nearing that point, I found a very interesting website which has a lot of information on the CMS (and how fucking crap they are): voiceofthechild.org.uk/

@Nothavingfunrightnow I have used that website before, and very handily there is a full copy of the CMS policies and procedures on there. This has been very, very helpful to quote at them, when they tell me they can't do something. Just beware not to take everything at face value, as that website states it is for the child's best interest, however on several pages I have found it to be biased towards non-resident parents who feel they are paying too much.

@ElsieMc You seem to be in a similar situation to me! Debt stands at around 10k at the minute, which is a bloody shitload of missed payments if you consider my ex is a low earner. We are currently with the financial investigation team too, as apparently if they only have a part years figures from HMRC, and the rest was self employed, they can't use that year to cculate income and will use previous years which are much lower. This is the case even if the employer will confirm that the person earner much more. Not that it matters, as they don't take action to secure funds anyway. Apparently they're planning on sending a bailiff next- fat lot of good that will do.

@elsiemac

To the poster who has only waited since June, I told them on 2 January this year about a change of employment for my gs's dad and guess what? I have still got no more money despite it going to the Financial Investigation Team who found he was earning DOUBLE what he had stated. He now pays nothing. He has arrears of £2,500 which I receive undoubtedly after my death as I am in my fifties.

No! It’s criminal isn’t it?

I hope mine should be sorted soon as the DOE has been issued and applied and he is military so would hope it’s relatively simple going forward.... (cringes in advance of own naivety!)

@mishfish I believe that the military are very good at enforcing payments, so there's a very good chance it will work. Various advisors have told me it's up to three months to set up DOE, so fingers crossed you hear something soon.

I got through really quickly. But fat lot of use that was.
I had told them months ago that he was working and earning. A nil assessment remained. He then started employment (same company, but instead of self employed). He told them he was earning.
Fast forward 3 months. I'm pushed off he's still paying nil and he just says to me that he'll pay when and what they tell him.
He also told me he's now filed a tax return for last years s/e income.
So I phoned to ask them why they were taking so long. I was told that they will only backdate maintenance to the start of his employment, and ignore the self employment. I asked why. They said they won't go back and change a nil assessment. So I ask if they will for a period of employment why won't they for a period of self employment, when HMRC has the figures. I was told that's just how it is.
X is surprised when I told him he'll get saddled with arrears
Surely that is duff information about not being able to go back and reassess a nil assessment once there's evidence of his earning?
I told the man I'd told them months ago he was earning and they'd ignored me. "You didn't send evidence" he says. Well what evidence does he expect me to have ffs? I told him I had messages passing between us where X confirmed he was working. Was told that wasn't evidence.
Am I ever going to get any money?

shallichangemyname, I have eventually managed to get through to CMs and while my circumstances are different from yours, a reconsideration of previously reported change in income CAN be reassessed. The process is called a Mandatory reconsideration (or summat!). I recommend you phone them again (I know, I know...) and insist that they reconsider and obtain up to date figures from HMRC.

Thanks for that OP, I'll call them x

They are more than useless. I had a letter from them saying they had done the annual reassessment. The letter mentioned a child ( iirc it referred to "her" at one point) and said no maintenance was payable. I phoned them to queary it as I have 2 DC. Both boys. They told me they can't do anything as they can only reassess once per year even if the claim is wrong.