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Hey,
has anyone got any experience of this please.
Between January - April I was working a temporary full time job, on minimum wage. Between then I was paying about £170 a month for my 2 kids.
I paid the usual £170 as the beginning of April, then my employment contract ended on April 11th, I called the CMS who advised me that I would now be on the NIL RATE and should cancel the payments until I either started working or started getting benefits.
Now, the CMS have started saying that I should have paid £170 at the beginning of May which I think is wrong. Firstly, because they told me not to pay it anymore. Secondly, I only earned about £200 for the whole of April in any case so I don't see how it would be fair that I would have to give 85% of my earning over in child maintenance.
I think it's because my ex is chasing them for it, I think the CMS may have forgotten to tell her or not updated the case file or something - either way, I'm still out of work (currently receiving benefits and have been paying child maintenance at £9 a week since I've been getting them) and it's very stressful.
I'm quite confident that I don't owe £170 for the May payment, but how do I sort this out with CMS? I've been going round in circles with them and now they have said it will be moved to a collect and pay case unless I pay the £170 which I think is totally unfair. I feel like just packing in my JSA so there's nothing they can take unfairly. we're currently living on my partners, fairly low wage plus my JSA between two people until I can get another job which is easier said than done. We don't have any savings so there's nothing I could do even if I wanted to. We are literally living on the edge.
As you've had no joy with the CMS, you need to get some help from either your local MP or CAB, they will assist you to deal with this matter.
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