Fucking fuming - child maintenance review

[aremenreallysuchcunts]

Got child maintenance review today. DC dad declared he earned £13,248 last financial year. He claims he works 6 days a week and is always late picking dc up due to work and works every weekend even the Saturdays he has dc. He owes £1254 in arrears via the cms and £2500 from before I applied to the cms (obviously I have written that off) so now I get the princely sum of £29.30 a week but not before cms have taken their 4%.
is this a joke? How do men like this have no shame? I know there is nothing to be done I am just venting. I have never included his money in my budget thank god but that doesn’t mean I don’t need it! I work full time and I work hard but why do men think this is ok? Why do the girlfriends think this is ok? Why do the father’s parents think this is ok? I have 3 boys and no way would I be congratulating them on avoiding maintenance.
Oh, and he’s a plasterer 🤣
Fucking patriarchy.

Faredodgers
Priority debts are debts owed to the government. He can take out a budgeting loan once a year then doesn't have to pay any maintenance till it's paid off when he can apply for another one.. and so on.

That is definitely not how it works, CMS comes above money owed to the government. They would pay the CMS and reduce the budgeting loan payment. Plus budgeting loans don’t really exist anymore

Since you told me it isn't true here you go!

Order of priority for deductions from Universal credit

Deductions taken before the priority order is applied
The following deductions are taken before the priority order is applied (in order of
precedence):

1. Fraud penalties.
2. Conditionality sanctions.
3. Short-term advance (Universal Credit Advance: new claim or change of

circumstances).

1. First month advance (Universal Credit Advance: benefit transfer).
2. Budgeting Advance.

Child maintenance comes after the priority order and after all of the above (and various other things as well)

https://data.parliament.uk/DepositedPapers/Files/DEP2023-0365/052DeductionsspriorityorderrV7-0.pdf

Im pretty sure the majority of tradesmen do this!!

I’m sure. But if HMRC can investigate tax dodgers and fraudulent benefit claimants why can’t they do it for men who play the system like this? We have all seen the videos of people who claimed to be incapacitated doing sky dives or whatever. And the tax dodgers who claim to earn no money but drive a Ferrari? Why can’t this be investigated in the same way?

They absolutely can & do do this IF the person is reported with some evidence.

If you know someone who is self employed and under declaring you can and should report them to HMRC for investigation, you can do this anonymously via tax evasion line if you want to.

If you know the other parent is deliberately manipulating their income to minimise CMS you can request a variation with CMS asking them to look into what comes under “lifestyle inconsistent with declared income”. If a parent claims they’re earning £12k a year but is driving around in a brand new BMW & off to Dubai 3 times a year then you have easy evidence to report them, CMS/HMRC can then ask for further financial disclosure, they can look at social media to check bookings/availability vs income, you need to report them to HMRC not just CMS. HMRC can have a really good look into it as I say they can and do go through social media, they look to family etc. They can do test purchases so e.g. they can do test purchases so they message the person as a customer on Facebook, book in, get confirmation that this person is working in cash.

It’s really shit and it shouldn’t be the way it is but please do report it because it absolutely can and should be investigated.

Good luck getting the debt off him. My ex hasn't paid since September last year, hes worked the whole time, not self employed or cash in hand so his earnings are visble. Hes meant to pay via collect and pay but didn't set up the standing order. Every week I ring cms I just get told they are attempting to contact him but aren't getting a response. 6 months ago they were applying for an attachment of earnings. Still haven't seen a penny and still being fed the same shit from cms, Its an hour sitting on hold every week to them just to be told the same thing as the week before. Not sure what else I can actually do now if cms themselves aren't doing anything.

I'd message him....

I know in your twisted mind you think you've won. You haven't won anything. You lied and stole from your own

Dh’s ex just threatened to give up work if we went to cms. Her OM (that she cheated on dh with) agreed and offered to support her as he had a good job.

Because he’s small fry. He doesn’t drive a Ferrari. He probably earns a grand or so more a month than he declares. Do you think HMRC or cms give a shit about that? It’s stopped me paying cash in hand to anyone though.

That’s a different scenario in that there’s no fraud or evasion there. It’s really shit behaviour but she’s not hiding or under declaring, she genuinely isn’t earning.

For cases of evasion where income is being deliberately hidden, HMRC can and do investigate.

the goverment pays child maintenance for them so they are in debt with the goverment, after they go out money is taken from their salary or thy take their assets.

I’m not going to message him. I am going to write to my mop any media I can think of (who won’t give a shit anyway) I will do everything I can to make sure this kind of shit stops or at least it is less easy to get away with. Won’t be in time for my dc but after dealing with this madness for the last 11 years and going through real traumatic crap no longer will I sit back and complain. I will at least stand up and try

So why don’t we just skip the jail bit (which costs the taxpayer money) and seize assets/take from salary to pay cms?

Hey OP

I have been in similar situations with my first born's DF. It always blows my mind to think about how his girlfriend and parents think it's all above board, but anyway...

I mainly came on here to say, if you're sure he's getting income from elsewhere take him to the cleaners. My DM did this whilst I was growing up and my DF got hung out to dry. I obviously did not know this at the time but as time as gone on and I've had children of my own, my DM has revealed things to me as an adult. It took a long time but it was very satisfying. I suppose the worry is that he's a plasterer so it's cash in hand, it there are still ways to pin him down. It's a crime. Go get him!

Appeal the decision.

If he's self employed presumably in construction and is the director of a limited company why is he paying himself peanuts?

They can use either notional income or lifestyle incompatible with his declared income.

HMRC are also worth trying as they should be hot on people related to the business getting paid amounts they havnt earnt.

It's disgusting.

All you can do is bring your boys up to be better men.

Doesn't help you though - sorry for your situation.

but she would have given up work purely to avoid paying cms.

just as bad imo. In those cases they should be able to look at household income and where their money comes from.

but she would have given up work purely to avoid paying cms.

just as bad imo. In those cases they should be able to look at household income and where their money comes from.

or taken from the mortgage free house that dh signed over to her as she “couldn’t” get a mortgage on her own.

How will that work if this deadbeat father then loses all his business because the OP sabotages his earning potential.

he will have even more of an excuse not to pay what he should!

People keep saying oh report him if he is driving around in a bmw or Mercedes and holidaying abroad 3 times a year- he is doing none of those things. He is literally giving his girlfriend the cash for her to buy things, go on holiday just the 2 of them, have takeaways, buy themselves new clothes all the time and go on weekends away. How can anyone prove he financed that?

The only way I can see all absent parents being held responsible is if a minimum amount of how much it costs to raise a child was calculated, and half of that was paid to the resident parent (or amended based on how much time each parent has the child). The amount due would become owed by the non-resident parent as an accruing debt, which affects their credit score that prevents them buying a house, holding a credit card, buying a car on finance, etc until it it cleared. There could be higher amounts applied for earners over a certain amount, if necessary.

OP! Mine is a plasterer to and does general labouring stuff and the occasional time I call he's at work and tells me amd DS has worked with him. He moved miles away and never paid a penny and not long ago I got cross and went through CSA and im not due a penny as he receives benefits. Hes married and she works to. I give up. DS hasn't seen him for a few months now.

My ex had a nil assessment as he apparently earnt less than £7 per week. He could afford a posh motorbike, sky glass TV and whatever. Frequently cancelled/cut short his contact hours as he was working though.
Make it make sense! CMS didn't care.

What does his girlfriend do? Does their lifestyle outstrip what she could finance?

Ive always said that. There should be a minimum contribution that is a sensible amount per child. If the NRP can't or won't pay it the gov does and it's a debt to the gov that doesn't get written off and counts against pension credits.