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AIBU?

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Original poster

Don't really know where to put this but CMS issues!

31 replies

FedUp120028 · 04/09/2025 23:36

This place gets a lot of traffic so thought I'd start here...

Maintenance payments were due to cease in February for one child and August 31st the other child. One is working full time and not in education, other is off to uni. RP is maintaining that the children are in education and maintenance is still payable in full. CMS have sided with the RP as child benefit is still in payment.

Waiting for tribunal but NRP cannot afford to keep paying the several hundred they do while waiting for this, so lowered the payment this month and has now been threatened with collect and pay.

Any advice please?

OP posts:
Ihavetoask · 05/09/2025 09:34

Yes but i am fairly sure that the CB system actually checks that the student is enrolled in the school. I know this because my oldest went to a college which is fairly obscure and there were some issues with them locating the institution on their system. It was there under a slightly different name.

I then assume the CM check with CB. As an RP, I can't think how I'd get away with this. I can only think they're still assessing the circumstances from last Spring.

Original poster
FedUp120028 · 05/09/2025 09:50

Ihavetoask · 05/09/2025 09:34

Yes but i am fairly sure that the CB system actually checks that the student is enrolled in the school. I know this because my oldest went to a college which is fairly obscure and there were some issues with them locating the institution on their system. It was there under a slightly different name.

I then assume the CM check with CB. As an RP, I can't think how I'd get away with this. I can only think they're still assessing the circumstances from last Spring.

So, the child who left in February would see been enrolled at the start of the academic year, RP has just not updated CB/CMS and when asked by CMS she has just said 'no, 18yo is still at college'

OP posts:
Nearly50omg · 05/09/2025 09:54

Contact child benefit then as well and tell them about the real situation!! They will just claim it back off RP via hmrc and then CMS will
follow suit

ARichtGoodDram · 05/09/2025 10:05

CMS have their hands tied in this one - if child benefit is being paid then CMS is due. It's a shit blunt system sometimes.

Speak to your MP and ask them to chase up the child benefit side. Your partner is being financially impacted by someone committing benefit fraud. Some MPs will be quicker than others to help, but they should be able to speak to CB and get the investigation moving.

Does the RP claim any other benefits that you know of? If there's UC or anything else in play then it's possible they're fiddling that as well.

ThePure · 05/09/2025 10:08

That will not wash for this academic year though will it because it will be obvious that neither is enrolled so I think that now it’s Sept of the new year this will all be quickly resolved and RP would also know that.

I would inform child benefit and CMS of the position and then stop the payments from Sept. RP had a lot of time to plan for this scenario and claimed fraudulently so I would not feel bad.

I would start giving the DC regular money directly instead.

mammat72 · 08/09/2025 13:44

FedUp120028 · 04/09/2025 23:36

This place gets a lot of traffic so thought I'd start here...

Maintenance payments were due to cease in February for one child and August 31st the other child. One is working full time and not in education, other is off to uni. RP is maintaining that the children are in education and maintenance is still payable in full. CMS have sided with the RP as child benefit is still in payment.

Waiting for tribunal but NRP cannot afford to keep paying the several hundred they do while waiting for this, so lowered the payment this month and has now been threatened with collect and pay.

Any advice please?

you don't want to go to collect and pay as they will add 20% onto nrp payments making it even harder. child benefit should stop in the august of when the child reaches 16 if they are still claiming maybe contact the child benefit agency. and again chase the cms up and ask for a reassessment to be done. keep screen shots of any concersation with ex where they admit what the kids are doing as this can be used in evidence

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