Do I have to pay his bills?

[keepingupwiththejoneses]

I have posted this on legal but is very quiet tonight, so sorry for the double post.

'I am currently in the middle of separating from H. He is refusing to leave our house and isn't contribute to the household. All our bill come out of our joint account which has our TC, kids DLA and my carers allowance going in, including his mobile and car insurance. Can I cancel them? I can't afford to pay them anyway so if I do something else will suffer anyway.'

If he's not contributing to the joint account, then you have no responsibility to pay his bills. The difficulty with cancelling any DDs from a joint account would be that he could re-instate them at any time without your consent.

I would open an account in your sole name (or use an existing one) and then inform the separate benefits agencies that you were changing your bank details at the same time. Wait until you're sure they are using your new bank details and then freeze the joint account. This way you can make sure that he can't continue to use the joint account until it's overdrawn leaving a joint debt for which you would be liable.

Open a seperate account and transfer the TC DLA etc in to it - do that tomorrow, first thing. That is benefits to support you not pay for phones - then get your name taken off the joint account - cancel his DD's etc what ever the bank will allow you to do.
wether or not you are required to pay these bills I dont know but I am damn sure the kids are not! I dont know how you go about dealing with that but the bank will help you properly.
Sorry I cant be of more help but that is what I did with the TC when we split

Thanks for that. I wasn't sure I wasn't just being stubborn. I have a separate account I can use and will sort that out tomorrow, I just don't have time to sort it all out as his insurance is due Friday.
Just to say his insurance is for a van only he uses for work.

I'd cancel that DD for his van's insurance tbh - by the time he realises you probably will have frozen the joint account and he will soon realise that this particular gravy train has come to an end - cheeky fecker!

I've read your other thread and think you're doing really well btw

Thanks Cash, I will do that in the morning. I have to be strong for my boys, they have things hard enough with out this too. The bastard has had another go at ds2 about not going to school today even said to him that he didn't need any of his rubbish with everything he is going through ds2 is only 12!

Oh yes - cancel all his personal DDs in that case, serve the stupid twat right - will search out your other thread again so I can do some proper arse-kicking!

When he discovers all the things you've cancelled, tell him that's he's next on your 'to do' list

So far I have called, carers allowance, DLA and child benefit and changed the bank details, TC is another matter, on hold for ages. I have cancelled the DD's but can't close the account for another 2 weeks as they can't be sure the details will update in time for the payment to be sent
I am hoping he will be well gone before he finds out, well I can hope

All done, everything changed over to my bank account, just got to wait for the payments to start going in and I can close the joint account

It's at times like this that we really, really need an [evil] grin emoticon.

I agree, I feel so naughty could do with a [devil]. On the one hand I feel so relieved but on the other I feel a little worried that everything will hit the fan IYKWIM.