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Hello,
Im new here, looking for abit of advise.
A week into January, i was pulled into my work office and told that i was losing my job. But they was going to put me on garden leave and pay me one last wage as it was short notice. It was something that i didnt expect but i thought it is what it is and ill find a new job, at least ive got a month and another wage to help with rent etc. Then a few days later i receive 4/5 CSA letters all at once with different dates on them. Each one i opened, my CSA payments rose a few hundred quid a time.
I was instructed that it had gone to the collection payment deductions from earnings and theyd be deducting from my wages. The figure was £570 a month for 2 children. I rang and explained that i was jobless now and if they took that much out of my £1400 (before tax) it would financially cripple me and would leave me homeless as it was my last wage and i needed it for living and rent and bills, and also for when my 2 daughters visit me at the weekends. I was told on the phone it wasnt due till march so i shouldnt need to worry about it and it will be reassessed.
The end of the month came, and i was told by my ex employer that they'd received a phone call telling them they HAD to deduct the money out my wage as they'd been legally told so. Thus leaving me in this situation. Ive since spoken to CSA to explain my situation today. But i was told "as harsh as it sounds, we dont take living expenses, bills and outgoings into account, thats not our problem"
This has left me wondering what to do and how im going to pay my rent and also live for the rest of the month whilst i find another job.
* I have my children 2 days a week, they stop 1 night and are always welcome to stop more if im available. But CSA wasnt told about this(they told me on the phone), my youngest daughters mother had lied to them and said i wasnt seeing her, as she knew that the payments would go down, she isnt daft.
So my question is, can i somehow try and get something back from csa as im not able to afford to live and will end up being homeless, making it impossible for me to see my daughters at all.
hi,
thats a very tough situation. in hard times i borrowed money to pay off house bills. try and see if family willing to borrow you money. also if you see that you will probably be out of work for several weeks, then chase up that P60 form or whatever they give you after you left a job. send that to CMS as proof that your out of work, and they should not expect you to make payments until your back in work.
if it gets very bad and you end up on benefits while looking for work, then you tell CMS and they will expect you to pay £7 a week in maintenance. once your stable again you should look at legal options, like getting a court order that states how many nights the kids live with you. that way CMS has solid proof and your ex will struggle to lie to them.
Have you had contact with CMS previously - the deduction from earnings of such a high amount is normally only used if you are in arrears with payments.
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