[Solved] taking savings into maintenance decisions

yes they will . how ever the other parent would have to request a variation on other incomes not used in the calculation. an assessment can be completed on assets such as monies in the bank etc , even on a small army pension you would be entitled to benefits its your savings thats stopping the benefits

They will assess on assets over 60,000. It may be worth using the CSA calculator before you have the discussion.

Thanks. Have read the CSA guidance (amongst other information available). I dont have that much and I was paying her far too much even when I was working.

As I get a war pension I only need to pay her £5/week. I dont want to make it bad between us as I know our child will suffer, so there is hopefully a solution to be had once I present the facts both then and now

its my pension not savings, as when I tried ten years ago, I had already used my savings before asking for help. all they paid was my stamp. I was amazed and felt so degraded it sent me to a bad place. I will never sign on again

If you are only liable to pay 5.00 per week, then anything you pay over that is voluntary, and hopefully that will ease the situation.

If you dont "sign on" then you become a "ghost" Also your not getting your NI paid, which will mean you will have problems when you get older with a state pension.

I know sorting out employment support allowance is a pain, as I am also on a pension from work, and I have to send them details of what I think is my private business to be told I am not entitled to ESA but they will pay my NI due to being on a pension!
Every year is the same! (39 years old now, been retired 6 years)

Also if you have NO proof of income the CSA will 1st charge you the standard rate as they cannot see any income or benefits so thats £30 a week for 1 child.
A war pension give you the lower rate of £5 a week (going up to £10 soon I think)

As the CSA could not touch any money I had even my pension they went for a variation order, which then allowed them to use my pension as an extra income so stung me on my own pension!
Lucky for you an armed forces pension cannot be touched, strange as I also worked for the goverment but in a different way.

hi the forces pension goes into the calculation on csa cases its war disablement pension (those who get an extra war pension through medical reasons ) that cannot be touched , the variation order is other incomes not used or assets over 60 000 ,and when any one is on benefits ie DLA this over rides any other income until the variation is applied ,you only get a default (DMD) implemented if you do not respond or do not provide evidence of earnings. or there lack of . also any tax credits even child tax credits go into the calculations oh yea the law changed on the 10/12/12 you now have to pay for children up to the age of 20 as long as they're in full time education !!

Just to clarify Lizzie - as far as I know, if the NRP is on any means tested benefit, then as long as they are still receiving that benefit, and other income isn't taken into account (presumably if the other income is high enough, then the means tested benefit would stop), and I don't think the CSA will uphold a variation if there is means tested benefit in place - it this how you understand it?

hi no usually its dla benefit that the nrp is on , they can have savings of any amount and still receive this benefit . they can also work and receive dla and the variation will go ahead as other income , a variation will not be offered usually its something the pwc would ask for when they get the assessment or if they make a fuss then this will be offered or CAB usually advise them to ask for this . and like wise if the nrp travels a distance to see his children they can request a variation how ever if there is shared care deducted this cannot be added along side of it.complicated thing csa some times feels harsh on some nrps and some pwcs end of the day what every one needs to remember that this is for the children that both parents have brought into this world , the parent who looks after the child has to provide a [censored] of a lot more then a share of the nrps income on receiving end of both of this world my ex is s/e earned around 1500 a week when we were together 8 months ago . but now earns 100 a week i have to pay him for my one son 75 a week he pays me 5 for the other 2 , still has the same life style justt tells the tax man bull really hard world we live in eh , all i can say to those out there THE CHILDREN SHOULD COME FIRST THEY DIDNT ASK TO BE BROUGHT INTO THIS WORLD TRY AND MAKE IT EASIER WHILST THEY'RE YOUNG! rant over enjoy your children

Ah, reason I was asking is that my ex is on a means tested benefit (CSA can't tell me what - data protection, fair enough - it could well be DLA) and because of that, the CSA said I can't go for a varation on the £5 per week she pays, even though I know she has a private pension being paid 😡

hi i do know a lot about csa as i used to work for them and if the pension is taxable this by law (as long as this is not related to disablement due to injury at work or at war ) has to be taken into consideration i cannot remember the legistration code it comes under of hand but will try and locate it for you . also if any tax credits are being paid these need to be taken into account but again you need to ask for this to be added otherwise it wont as some case workers are too lazy to look into it .are under the new rules system or old rules (pre 2003)

Brilliant lizzie - if you can find the legislation, that would be helpful. Her pensions are private pensions that matured last year, and it's all under the new rules.

I get a FULL pension as I became very ill and disabled and lucky for me I worked for the goverment so I got my full pension paid out when I was 33. I do get Disability and Mobility at full rate, also I get industrial injury's benefit (20% due to work injury)

So when I was 1st took through the CSA they said it would be £5, but my ex knew I was getting a pension, so also told the CSA and they did do a variation order!
Now the CSA was confused for a while, due to the industrial injury's, but as my pension was a large amount, and I was being taxed on it, they took the 1st £100 out of this income (weekly) and then did an variation order on the rest of my pension.

So yes other income will be taken in to account, IF its being taxed, and over £100 a week!
you have to hope the CSA can help find the money, as I was told to not tell the CSA about my pension, but I was paying for my child anyway, and worked it out on the CSA website, So had nothing to hide from them, and when they did the final variation it was a bit lower than I worked it out and was paying.
but I still pay 1/2 towards cloths, school stuff, holiday's etc on top, except for my 18 year old, as she dont go to school now, but I do give her some extra money when she needs it, just waiting for the CSA to stop on her so I can pay my daughter direct.

So again if its more than £100 a week and being taxed then a variation order can bring in more money!

B

Thanks Brumie 🙂

Alls well that ends well. I had the difficuly dicussion with her and after she stopped crying and admitted she had had it good for so long, we have agreed to half what I pay for a short period and then stop it totally if she is able to cope (she has a good job). I also get more access to my son as we will spilit the care 50/50 and costs for uniforms, trips, clubs etc. thanks to everyone who provided useful information

Hi Berty.

Thank you for your post. I am William the Child Maintenance Options consultant.

It is good to see that you and your ex-partner have been able to renegotiate your family-based arrangement. Whilst this type of agreement is not legally binding, it is flexible and can be changed as your circumstances change.

It has been shown that when both parents keep an active role in their child's life it can have a positive impact on their wellbeing and development.

Research has also proven that parents collaborating together to agree a maintenance arrangement can go a long way to helping a child adjust to the change in the family living arrangements.

To help you keep your family-based arrangement on track we do have useful guides, tools and a family-based arrangement form available on our website at: http://www.cmoptions.org.

Alternatively, If at any time in the future you need further information, you can call the Child Maintenance Options team on 0800 988 0988 (free from a landline).