Great news for those who's exes don't pay maintenance

[Joysmum]

According to BBC news:

Parents who default on child maintenance payments face being turned down for mortgages and credit cards under new government plans

It's about time more action was taken against parents who don't pay towards the upkeep of their kids

Long awaited news!

They should be jailed IMO.

They say the devil is in the detail and in this case it will only apply to cases where they get a liability order which is very very rare. You can tell there is an election coming up. cynical? me? no never

It's a start. It's about time patents were held more accountable for funding their children.

Jail them. Force them to do work if they say they are unemployed.

They already have power to act, if they have a liability order they can apply to court for an order of disqualification which takes away the paying parents licence for 2 years or prevents them applying for one or a warrant of commitment which can send them to jail for 6 weeks. The powers are already there to act but they don't get used what needs looking at is why the powers that exist aren't used not add more to be ignored too.

Sorry but this is just cynical, electioneering tripe.

And what if they live in another country?
This is just not enforceable!
Would be great but I agree with linerunner on this one.

It's a bummer, isn't it? I got quite excited at first and then read the detail (such as there is). And then I just felt deflated and patronised. And a bit angry and used.

So not such a great election tactic, then, on reflection.

Governments tend to be quite motivated to secure extra revenue. A dead-beat parent failing to pay maintenance just means a bigger welfare bill for the Exchequer. So I wouldn't be too quick to dismiss it as electioneering.

It will fade into the background, never to be heard of again, like a lot of these populist promises they make.

CogitoErgoSometimes maintenance isn't taken into account for benefits purposes because it is too unreliable, it used to be but the system failed badly. A new power won't change anything because they already have effective powers, besides when you break it down the people who are really an issue are those who under declare income, constantly change jobs, work cash in hand etc, these people are going to struggle with credit ratings anyway.

I realise that about the current Tax Credit system but understood that maintenance would be taken into account in relation to the new Universal Credit?

Thanks for creating this thread, joysmum, it did cheer me up listening to this news on the radio.

Agreed silence, I'm as cynical as the next person regarding political promises not coming true, but if it does see the light of day (and I feel like writing to my MP to endorse it!), it sends a strong message to people with children who are happy to shirk their responsibilities on the one hand, but then think they have a "right" to a good credit rating. It is definitely a step in the right direction.

I struggled for 14 years with the CSA, even getting my MP involved, who just so happens to be David Cameron, and to date, I have never had a penny from the father of my two children who are now 20 and 18. The worst experience ever was dealing with them!!! They are a joke and a waste of tax payers money. Rant over !

will be a nonsense that never gets used.

even where absent parents do pay maintenance under the csa they can't be bothered to check if their wages have changed. i got in touch with the csa recently pointing out that my son's father had been paying the same amount for nearly 5 years now and i knew he must have had wage rises in that time as he works for an LA. they eventually responded to say they would not be looking into it as i had no evidence they merely needed to send out a letter saying can you confirm your current income and provide evidence.

soon they'll cancel my agreement and i'll be paying for the privilege of them not even bothering to ensure their figures aren't five years out of date.

there is simply no will politically to enforce child maintenance and most political will seems to be directed at economic policies and cuts that will do their best to force women to stay with even abusive partners rather than become single parents.

no way is anything that makes it easier to be a single mum going to be supported by the powers that be, any of them to be fair but least of all tories with their long standing attitude to single mothers.

so basically they'll make their profit on a percentage of my son's maintenance that is based on his biological father's earnings 5 years ago. so my son will get even less of a percentage of what isn't even an up to date salary. for all they know he could be earning an extra 20k by now.

CogitoErgoSometimes double checked and maintenance will not be taken into account when universal credit comes in.

TheHoneyBadger I'm hoping that my maintenance will be recalculated when they get his new employer details. I'm reasonably hopeful because I think he might have annoyed CSA more than he does me. They are not even giving him the option this time to pay they are just setting up the attachment of earnings as soon as the trace from HMRC comes back.

I'm lucky that I don't need to rely on it but many lone parents do and the system does need reforming properly not just headline catching ideas which change nothing.

can'tbebothered - i'm thinking if they're going to start charging they should at least provide a proper service and do checks and keep it up to date. i'm not holding my breath though.

likewise i'm not hand to mouth reliant on it but it isn't the point. he paid nothing for three years whilst i foolishly hoped he'd come to his senses then i gave up on that idea and went to the csa. never since that original claim have they even updated anything, checked if he still earns the same or done anything other than the initial chase and force paternity test (he knew damn well he was the father but i suspect that isn't the line he'd told the woman he got pregnant and was foolish enough to let him move in and marry him 6months after he realised i wasn't going to cave and let him move in with me just because i'd gotten pregnant).

if they're going to take a chunk of g's money they could at least provide a service for their cut.

TheHoneyBadger When you move over to CMS and start paying fees they will treat it as a new claim and will recalculate so you should end up better off than now. I think they are hoping that people won't bother claiming when they have to pay upfront and don't really expect to get anything back which will cut down on the number of nrp who show as not paying maintenance.

How can the government link mortgage and credit card applications to do this? If someone just doesnt reply and they have no proof who they are etc they are no further forward than now.

As others have said they already have powers they rarely use.

I am on the cynical election side until I see proof.

i presume it simply means that non payment of CM will go onto the credit report and be taken seriously as a debt. kind of incredible to think that this doesn't already happen.

so now the CSA etc don't even bother to register an unpaid debt with experian et al.

Its an awful system. My eldest son is from a previous relationship. He's 12yrs now & we separated when he was a baby. Never had anything from him.
Went to CSA & told them he see's his father once a fortnight (ex's choice) and his father told them he has him more. Which I got told means 'shared care' . I disagree, which is not really the point here as he really does just him minimum he can get away with.
Anyway, they told me it was my word against his & I have to prove Have long given up.

I'm supposed to get money directly straight from ex's wages and I'm still not getting a penny. His boss is leading the CSA a merry dance. Pisses me right off as it is no business of his boss - jail for the lot of them!!

jelly the employer is wrong to collude with your ex in non-payment. i do payroll for a company and we got a phonecall and paperwork from DWP to complete and I now have to deduct a set amount from the wages each week and send it to CSA. It is very simple to do and the employer is very very wrong to not do it in your case. the employer should be taken to court for non-compliance, but the CSA seem very reluctant to do this