Maintenance

[isntfunny]

Just wanting some help. CMS have sent us a new maintenance payment calculation which is wildly wrong but they are saying they won't review it and if we disagree we have to take it to tribunal.

When we run our salary through the online calculator, what we are being told to pay is more than double this calculation. Even if I put in a salary of £60k after pension the payments are still higher than this. The salary we pay off is nowhere near £60k.

If people wouldn't mind sharing their salary and what they pay I would really appreciate it before we open up a tribunal. There is just no way we can afford to pay this.

Some schemes deduct the contributions before tax and others don't.

This ^

OP you are double deducting the pension which is incorrect

Even if I do or don't double deduct the pension, it makes a difference of about £30 to the calculation online. It isn't that. The payment he has been given is almost double what the online calculator says

£680 isn’t almost double £420 or £480.

You mentioned arrears - do you know what the total of these arrears are in the eyes of CMS?

It might be a few things, not one thing - £30 on the pension, collect and pay fee is 20%, miscalculation of arrears etc

CMS usually send a letter with a breakdown of exactly what they have included?

No, you need to use the P60 figure only. That's the taxable pay, after any auto enrollment pension contributions. Unless your husband is also contributing more from his net pay into a separate personal scheme?

If he's had an annual review though, which at 18 months he should have done, the figures will be from HMRC so in that sense a mistake shouldn't be made. I expect it's arrears that aren't helping you.

Are you willing to post the breakdown calculations from CMS?

Also remember that during the annual review they'll take the last annual figure from HMRC and will only recalculate if your current income is 25% higher or lower than that figure.

Another thing to look at is if he's on direct pay or collect and pay? If the latter, he'll be charged 20% on each payment.

the figures will be from HMRC so in that sense a mistake shouldn't be made.

Don’t ever take for granted they have it right. As I said above, they literally fabricated income and pulled old tax returns as evidence of income going forwards then added the two together for us. It was a nightmare. Plus they ask you to “prove” your other children are still alive EVERY year and they have not deducted my husbands pension contributions automatically once in the last ten years. They are a complete bunch of donkeys. They are reliant on people inputting data and if there’s an error somewhere along the way nobody seems capable of addressing it.

OP just to say I’ve had a look back over the info I put together and it’s the The Child Support Maintenance Calculation Regulations 2012 not the 2008 act you need.

I think you’ll need to look at part 5, chapter 3.

Thanks Apple very helpful