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Child Maintenance help

5 replies

SaffRose · 09/10/2025 13:28

Has anyone had to switch their child maintenance from direct pay to collect and pay? Does anyone know if the paying parent needs to keep making the payments direct until the collect and pay is set up? Child Maintenance said it takes a few weeks to set up and it’s too late for me to call them back today to ask but he is saying he wont be paying now until it’s set up making more arrears. We’ve always done Direct pay but still had a child maintenance account from day one but die to him being inconsistent i’d had enough and reported missed payments and requested to change it to collect and pay. They said it would take a few weeks to set up properly and that it says on the account may not be correct straight away. I forgot to ask if he is to keep paying me directly or not until they start taking it from his wage. I’m just absolutely sick of this back and forth about money and only want to speak to him about our child directly.

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ivegotthisyeah · 09/10/2025 16:40

Anything he doesn’t pay will get added to the debt so you will have the last laugh 😆

Sparkle123r · 09/10/2025 21:45

If it's switched over to calc and collect already, then no he should not be making any further payments directly as you have instructed CMS to collect on your behalf. If you've only just raised the request and it's still technically direct pay right now, then he should keep paying inline with his schedule. If he knows it's going to go over, then that's probably why he's saying he won't pay. All CMS can do is include it to arrears when they do move it over.

keepmeright · 10/10/2025 00:38

CMS tell them to stop paying directly when it goes to collect and pay. The arrears get added to your account. I went through this at the start of the year, took about three months to get my first payment..now ex is disputing the arrears so they haven't been collected. I'll get the money back eventuallybut advisor said they might wait until the annual review to see what he's actually still due. He will then get a payment plan for the arrears!

SaffRose · 14/10/2025 08:20

@ivegotthisyeahHe rang me really aggressive telling he how he wont be paying now and that he is ‘giving me the chance now’ to change my mind otherwise I wont have a payment until December. As soon as I stayed to try to speak he cut me off and hung up. I recorded the phone call anyway and told him I wont be answering anymore calls from him and he needs to message me so everything is in writing. I called CMS yesterday and they confirmed he doesn’t have to pay now and it looks like they will start taking from his wage in December which is fine. It’s going to be a struggle but I can wait. It’s him who is rubbish with money and should really think about saving the money he would’ve been giving me between now and December but he wont he’ll just spend it but it’s not my problem.

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SaffRose · 14/10/2025 08:21

@Sparkle123rThanks, I rang them and they confirmed he doesn’t have to pay now until December when they start taking it from his wage. It will be a struggle but it’s fine. The arrears will be added on

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