Child Benefit Rival Claim Ex Partner Earning Loads!!!!!

[ProlongedAffair]

Me and my ex share 50/50 of our two children, it’s not court ordered but has been in place for the past few years. A few months ago I put in a claim for CMS and was awarded it, they see me as the primary carer because I get both children’s child benefits. I also discovered my ex is earning a 6 figure salary.

Last week I got a letter from child benefit saying that he is challenging my claim. I said to the lady that he earns too much to claim and I suspect he’s only claiming so he can try to get out of CMS. She told me that because he has the children for half the time and child benefit isn’t means tested, the likelihood is they will award child benefit one each! Surely that can’t be correct, can anyone advise who has been through their rival claims process?? He will then be able to claim CMS from me!!

That's incorrect. The CMS website states clearly that under UK rules, in a 50/50 situation, no-one pays child maintenance. The CMS famously does not know its own arse from its elbow. They get things wrong all the time. In cases where the disadvantaged parent is apathetic or struggles with literacy or to advocate for themselves, it's possible that CMS can make a mistake and never be corrected.

That's not the situation OP is in. Her ex has sent a clear message that he's had enough and is going to fight her on this, so any misapplication of the law will be robustly challenged.

Whatever the outcome I will update the thread

If he has them half the time why are you claiming money off him? He has to provide for the children during his time in the same way you do. So you expect him to cover the costs for that, but also cover their costs for when they’re with you just because he is a higher earner than you are?

This made me laugh out loud!

It seems likely from what people have said on here that he will get half the child benefits but I don’t know how or if that will impact child maintenance payments, I will have to see and speak to them as and when any of this comes about.

You do, you just don't want to hear it.

Of course it will impact child maintenance payments. He will not pay maintenance for any child he receives cb for…

Definitely?

No, not really.

You'll get everything. In fact, if you make a claim for your neighbour's child he has to pay you that as well

No this is all new to me and I just assumed,
it seems wrongly, that I would be entitled to the child maintenance as they let me open it on 50/50 in the first place. Then all of this rival benefit claim started happening.

Yes definitely. He shouldn’t be having to pay anything at all if he has them half the time frankly. I’m stunned that you put in a claim for cms in those circumstances at all to be honest.

OP - they will look at the situation on the day, not what may have happened before or what might happen in the future.

If care is 50/50 and you’ve both claimed, you will get CB 50/50.

The same is likely for CMS.

You remind my of my partners ex. She causes so much hassle and drama over the years. We had so many headaches over the years due to her trying to claim when not entitled.
Ongoing hassle which not only caused us problems but had negative impact on the children.

A pleasant co parenting relationship is worth so much more and you risk losing it all based on mistakingly believing you are entitled to money when you have 50:50 care.
Why cause this hassle?

@ProlongedAffair can I ask you if you thought it was truly, honestly fair that he might have to pay you CM when you have them 50/50? And if you do think that it's fair, why?

Do you get UC as well op?

No. He didn’t suddenly put in a CB claim at all did he. He did that as a response to you putting in a claim for CMS even though he has your slightly more than you do You found out he now earns more and you decided you wanted a piece of that pie.
you created this whole debacle.

He doesn't have to pay it back, he could claim Child Benefit and opt out of payments. So the claim is in his name but he never takes the money

Precisely. One of the rare men who steps up, parents his children equally and now he’s being financially penalised for earning a decent wage regardless.

It would actually gall me to treat my children’s father like that, much less rely on a man I’m no longer with rather than increase my own earning potential

.

The reason not many people are in your exact situation, OP, is that not many people open a CM claim with their ex when they have 50/50 care.

Don't lie. You posted about this a few months ago when you were asking whether it would be a good idea to open the CMS claim. Pretty much everyone said "No, it doesn't work how you imagine it works. You'll also destroy a good co-parenting relationship plus there are multiple things your ex could do to redress the balance none of which will be good for you".

And here you are. If this is real (something which I seriously doubt because, honestly, can anyone actually be this devastatingly clueless and yet still manage to type?) then you are deep in the FO stage of FAFO.

Why would CMS allow me to open a case on 50/50 if I wasn’t entitled to anything as people keep saying then?

The CMS make mistakes sometimes. If your ex had disputed it, he’d have succeeded. He is doing that now.
Earlier in the thread I posted the link to the legislation that specifically says they cannot assess where it is 50/50. You can’t get around that, unless a mistake is made.

Seriously?
Honestly I don’t know why people are still replying to you .
I wonder with your comments if you really are clueless or so self centred you can’t see past yourself and what you think .