Please help me to try and understand this new system before I take action with the CMS.
I have 2 children that I pay maintenance for. 1 is 18 in January, goes to college 3 days a week and lives with the other parent. My second child is 8 this month and also lives at home with the mother.
2 childen 2 seperate mothers.
I have been making payments for 15 years for my eldest through the old system direct from my salary. Never missed a payment and been a doting father. Only up until the last couple of years my daughter was also staying with me 3 times a month, now shes older, teenager doesnt have time for dad anymore! Typical teenager hey.
For my second child we have a family based arrangement where I pay direct by standing order and have been for 8 years, however the amount was agreed by the CSA. She stays with me 12 nights in a month.
I work in sales in the publishing industry, I have a basic salary of £30k, however, I do earn commission on a monthly basis which is paid in arrears.
On the old system the CSA would look at 6 months wage slips and work out an average monthly pay then calculate the child maintenance monthly payments from that.
On the new system, they have based the child maintenace payments from my P60 from 2017 and my child maintenace payments from May this year have doubled!!
As mentioned I work in sales, one month is not the same as the next, I could earn an extra £500 a month - £1000 + or as in certain months in the year £0!!!
How can the CSM just presume I will earn the same commission and total earnings this year as I did last year and make their calculation from that?
If I earn £0 in commission 1 month how am I expected to pay double the child maintenance ?
I live on the commission I earn, my basic salary wage is all taken with my outgoings and child maintenace payments, I am always in the red each and every month based on just my basic salary, its only when I earn commission I have extra money to live on.
With the new systems calculation I will be over £1500 in the red every single month and will plunge into massive debts and possibly lose my home etc.
Surely the CSM have to take into account your outgoings and personal circumstances?
I am not against making CM payments, not missed one in 18 years, however I have to live too.
Any help amd advise would be very much appreciated please.
Hi there
Unfortunately they don't take the paying parents outgoings into account, which can be pretty tough for some.
I'm not sure about how they could calculate on a salary, when commission plays such a large part in Hat you're paid and can vary widely.
Have you tried talking to them, or trying to. Reach a family based arrangement with both mothers instead of going through the CSA?
Best of luck with it.
I've just noticed that you've duplicated this post and put it on the end of an older thread. Duplicate posts can be confusing, especially if they both generate replies. I'm going to delete the other post, just in case you wonder what's happened to it!
Its absolutely crazy they dont take into account the paying parents outgoings. We have to be able to live too amd I now face losing everything which in turn will also have a very negative impact on the life I have with my youngest and the home of 5 years that she shares with me when she isnt with her mother.
Unfortunatley its my eldest daughters mother that wants it all to go through the new CMS system, she knows now she can get up to double the money, funny how she has managed comfortably on the money she has been receiving for over 15 years amd only now she wants more as the new system alloes it, tell me, does it really cost £495 a month to look after a 17 year old or in fact any child? Its nothing but a selfish act now.
I plan to ask the CMS to look at the figure again bearing in mind I also pay for a second child amd as you have mentioned, how can they calculate my payments to include commission as it has such a massive impact on what I earn month in month out! 1 month could be £0 commission the next £500 picka number , it constantly changes! I could go months with no commission at all!
If the figure doesnt change I will seek citizens advice and then if no further then I will start an appeal process, if that doesnt work, then tribunal and court and maybe local MP involvement
You could perhaps ask for a variation, if your employer can provide you with proof of the fluctuations in your monthly salary, it might help. As you say, you have the appeals process and your MP as back up. Here's a link to more info about how they calculate child maintenance, with some info about variation, mentioned at the beginning with more about it at the end of the guidelines.
Best of luck.
Are they working on 12% of your income for their calculation? If so, then you need to open a case with them for your other child. This will then mean that they will work on 16% of your income, and then split this equally between your two children. You can chose to increase the payments voluntarily to either ex if you wish, that's up to you.