bl00dy useless CSA

[Fizog]

I am so sick of them - they are completely useless!!!

I have been trying to get claim sorted for 18th months now. I am so angry, just wanted to get that off my chest.

Fizog, do what I did and stop phoning them. It's a hassle, but write to them instead. Find out who your case worker is, and write them a letter giving details of your claim and what has happened in the 18 months since you first claimed. Give them a date by which you want it sorted, and if they don't come back to you with some money, write to your MP about it. S/he will send a standard letter to them, and your case immediately goes to the top of the list.

I first claimed in November 2002. In that time, I have had 2 maintenance payments (one for £7 and one for £14), but I have had 3 lots of compensation from the CSA. You can also get compensation from them - they don't advertise it.

They have told me I can get compensation and that my case is already at senior management level... will be resolved in 30days etc

and still they are useless.

Honey ring them every day and do not go away until you get to speak to someone - also say you are writing to your MP (they don;t like this!!)

They are crap though I have a friend who has been fighting for 4 years for money from her x - he now gives her £5 a week - he owes her 9k and earns shit loads but has it all signed over to his new wife - men are shits when it comes to money most of the time IMO want to see the kids and cause you shit but don;t want to have to stick their hands in their pockets!!

God don't I know it - I've just sent them yet another letter telling them I'll take it further if they don't solve it by x date. £21 in 2 years - talk about pathetic.

If you're interested Fizog, OneParentFamilies are canvassing lone parents at the moment to find out their experiences with the CSA. They are having a meeting with some committee or other in October, so if you want to add your story (it can be anonymously) to their caseload, please log on to their website (www.oneparentfamilies.org.uk) and tell them about it. Every little bit helps in changing it.

Damn right Twinkie and you can't stop them seeing the kids because they don't pay as the courts frown upon in but it's alright for them to see the kids when they want to, make you have to schedule your life around their visitation and then get off absolutly scot free!!! no tantrums, no sleepless nights, none of the rubbish stuff.... f*cking @rses AAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRGH

MeanBean, post crossed am off to that website - I don't care if I'm not anonymous, I would quite happily shout from the roof tops how useless the CSA are!!

Meanbean - I've registered on that site but can't see a page to make comment re. the CSA. Have I misunderstood?

Hi Fizog
I've had a look and can't find a link either, but if you e-mail [email protected], the policy consultant, she is the person who is working on this and gathering all the responses. This is what she sent me:

Have you had contact with the CSA in the last year? If so, we would be interested in an e-mail from you. In particular, we are interested in the following:

• What difference does/would receiving maintenance make for you and your children?
• What are the consequences for you and your children if child maintenance is not paid/is underpaid/is late?
• How successfully has the CSA dealt with your application in the last year or so? (Please tell us whether you are a 'new' application - made after March 2003 and therefore decided under the new, simplified rules, or an 'old' case, dating from before March 2003.)
• Is the CSA doing enough to ensure that non-resident parents pay regularly, and that any arrears are also paid? Could more be done? It would also be helpful to know whether, in your case, the non-resident parent is employed, out of work, or self-employed. (Unfortunately, everyone is agreed that the last group are the hardest to deal with!)

HTH

Thanks meanbean - will email her this afternoon.

the csa are ridiculous. when dd was a month old i gave them all her fathers details. work, home, parents home, telephone numbers, date of birth etc... first they said she "wasnt showing on their system as being registered" then when she finally was, they telephoned her father who promptly slammed the phone down on them. they then contacted his work for details of his wages and sent me a calculation of how much he should pay. yet they STILL have not had a penny from him. why? my case worker told me if he refused to give info then they would just take the money out of his wages, now apparently there is some fault on the computer that is hindering my case. dd is now 8 months old. i am so fed up with them and just cannot see what is stopping them. also, they are supposed to have powers ie, taking away driving licence or fining anyone who refuses them info but these powers never seem to be used.

Nightowl, get your MP involved. It immediately puts a rocket up their arse. If every lone parent in the country wrote to their MP's telling them how shit the CSA were, it would be reformed next year!

i think i may just do that meanbean..i was told last time that my case was due to be resolved in sept. well sept is nearly gone! im not working now so im not sure if i would receive the money anyway but he should still be paying it...the a**e is swanning around in nice cars and going on holidays whilst completely denying his daughter's existence..grrrr....

Message withdrawn

right, have emailed my mp..if i hear nothing i will write too...fingers crossed!

Twinkie and Nightowl i'm feeling you. I had trouble with the fools in the CSA too - is sorted now, getting straight from employer.But i started noting down the full names of all the people i spoke to every time. You are right when they say this person is not available, phone again in two weeks time tell them that isn't good enough. I had to go through about 5 managers until i spoke to someone who got stuff done. And after that i went directly to her if i had a question not to the Team on the end of the phone as they were rubbish.
One of you has a friend who's ex earns 9k and she only gets £5. Man i bet she's mad. But he sounds wickedly clever cause the CSA actually told me, as long as they pay something in every month, they don't take them to court. Pants isn't it! Well if i get any cak from them in the future i may get my MP involved, had never thought of that.
They actually put money received from absent parent back into his account instead of mine one time. Talk about useless!!!!
You know what thoug, i wish i had gone to the CSA earlier instead of messing around listeneing to his pathetic promises of more money. And boy did he have a tantrum , was screming like a girl down the phone to me for 1hr when the CSA first contacted him. At the end of that i just said , are you finished!

i only ever speak to my case worker but even he doesnt seem to know anything, he even told me he had only worked there six months...which would mean basically that he started more or less when i made my claim. im not sure if my ex is even working now or has gone subcontract for the same company...he has the means to do so...if that's the case i guess i am screwed. (not that i have been stalking him or anything! )

dont talk to me about the CSA!!!!!!!! grrr - where to start.....its 46 weeks down the line since i told them that my ex moves from rented accomodation to living rent free with memeber of family, although there is already a deduction from earnings in place the csa have reassessed the claim & have NOT been chasing up the higher level of payments!! F**king buggers! am so tired of it all!

hey can I let off steam on here, my claim has been going on for over 3and half years. I know my ex is working but has paid total of £200 in 4 and half years for 2 kids.

I know he is working or has some kind of money coming in but seems to get away with it every time.
CSA are sure he is working self employed but said they can no longer do any research as they keep asking him and he says no, so now I have to do the investigating.

CRAZY CSA - who's idea were they anyway!!!!

im fast turning into a private detective too where the csa are concerned...well no point leaving them to deal with it. from what ive seen they couldnt organise a p**s up in a brewery.

Hey, funny that, I'v ejust had a call from teh CSA today who have given my EXDP a "NIl assessment" after nearly two years. Surprise surprise, he's shown as "No profit" as a self employed man. He said this would happen as he was going to not declare his earnings and make sure of a nil assessment. What man, has a double fronted dhop premises, boasts of contract with Social Services and then shows "NO Profit" Who works for a loss! He lives with parents who are both financial advisors in a huge house. The CSA won't even tell me basics like whether he is claiming that he's paying rent or mortgage cos he's not, he's living rent free with people who are loaded. I asked, what can you do and like you Nightowl, it comes down to me, cos they won't investigate. "Limited Resources"!!!!!!

What is it with these men? They have the equipment, take the responsibility when using it that it could create a "child" then dont take the responsibility once a relationship breaks down to bring up that child and provide for him/her. It is all left down to the mum to provide for.

Well all I can say girls, is stuff the men(you know which ones!), the csa, BE PROUD! At the end of the day when your children grow up and realise who has provided for them throughout there life and got them to where they are. YOU can take the pleasure in knowing who paid for everything, food, clothes and where they end up.

I have spent many a time up in arms cos my ex hasn't paid hardly a penny (£200 in 3 and half years), but then got to the point where I thought, why am I letting him ruin "my" life by letting him get to me over the maintenance, when that is exactly what they want cos they know they are fooling the csa, but know that you know they are working and earning. So I turned it round on the other foot and thought, right, no more worrying, no more stressing, get on with my life with my children, if he doesn't want to provide then I know that everything that my children have and every piece of clothing on their back, I have bought for them, I have provided the food on the table that feeds them every night. They soon become of an age where they realise what the men are like.

My children have openly admitted they see their dad as a bank, if they want an expensive toy that they know that I cannot afford they ask their dad, which bothered me at first, but now... I think well let him waste his money on toys that they play with for five minutes then move onto the next craze.

I give my kids love and care which is what they need, we had a little day for presents once and we had £20 max to spend on the kids due to my ex not paying maintenance and all we could afford were little lipglosses and bath bubbles and mini cars and trinkets etc, my daughter turned round to me and said this is the best day of presents we have ever had. It shows that you dont need to spend a lot on a child to make them happy.

So you mums out there, like me, feel PROUD!!!!

(sorry was a long one, but dont like the thought of people feeling like I was this time last year!)

im proud...ive been through absolute hell since he left me 3 months pg. but unfortunatly im the kind of person that just cant leave it one way or another i will prove to the csa as i said (think on other thread) that he is conning them very cleverly. over my dead body will he get away with what hes done. its not going to happen. the egotistic, self important, gutter scum idiot that he is...find a calm place nightowl... there, there i wish i could think like you jupiter maybe one day i will...i hope so.