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🙁 oh where do i start, well the x witch is a 23 year old who has a few spending problems to say the least, to be fare she wants the best for my boy but still think she is spending my csa money on her own pleasures is there any way of tracking or lawfully keeping an eye on this without being a [censored] and causing problems. She gets 30 pound a week on a Friday and i spend about 80 pound on my boy when hes with me from Friday after work too Sunday when i travel back to work in London. i would provide from a list she give me the items needed ie electric, food, anything my boy needs please help me on my quest for peace of mind and hopefully helping more dads out there, much respect to the people willing to set this service up high five moment to you all
I'm a bit confused as to what you're asking? Just to clarify, you pay 30 per week to your ex? Is that through the CSA and is that the amount they have told you to pay based on how many nights your son stays with you?
There really isn't anything you can do about what the resident parent spends maintenance on.
If you are paying through the CSA then anything above the amount they have set is discretionary. Obviously the time he spends with you would be at your expense but she should be providing a weekend bag with clothes. Her electricity costs are her responsibility.
If your arrangement isn't through the CSA then it might be as well to check the amount you should be paying, it's dependent on income and the CSA work it out as a percentage of that. Here's a link to the calculator to see if you are paying the right amount.
I know for a fact that the quite often the money I give my ex has not gone to our daughter but on other things she paid for, I have no proof but she has told me... don't really think she was thinking when she did.
For example a few times the money went straight to her mother for one thing or other, and one time I sent her the money for the whole month instead of weekly (because I was worried I wouldn't have it after a week or 2 so made sure she got it all) and then in the 3rd week she was asking me why I hadn't sent her money and going mad at me telling me I owed her money... funny thing is that same month she had travelled to see family twice and gone out a few times too... can guess where that money went!
If I had the money I would see if I could hire a solicitor to make some sort of arrangement where she has to provide receipts or something along those lines... unfortunately I don't!
Unfortunately the parent that pays maintenance has no say on how it is spent, she couldn't be made to give receipts.
Hi Commiteddad
Thank you for your post. If you have a family-based arrangement in place for child maintenance, you may wish to discuss this with the other parent as family-based arrangements are flexible to suit the circumstances of everyone involved and they aren’t legally enforceable.
Child maintenance is a contribution towards the cost of bringing up a child and this includes not only such items as food and clothing but also it is a contribution towards the home that the child lives in and the associated costs of running that home.
If an application is made via the Child Maintenance Service the paying parents are legally responsible only for the amount worked out by them and are not obliged to pay for anything extra. There is no way of tracking what the receiving parent spends the child maintenance on.
If you have a case with the government statutory scheme, you may wish to contact them directly to discuss your concerns. You will find their details on any letters they have sent you or on Gov.uk at https://www.gov.uk/child-maintenance.
If you have a Consent Order/Minute of Agreement in place then you may wish to see what is stipulated within your agreement regarding paying for extra items, such as school uniforms. Alternatively, you may wish to seek legal advice.
For more information on the different ways to set up child maintenance, you can visit the Child Maintenance Options website at http://www.cmoptions.org. They also have a sorting out separation web-app that you may find useful. It offers help and support to separating and separated families. The link is: www.dad.info/divorce-and-separation/sorting-out-separation.
Regards
William
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