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My son is 20 in May this year. He left school at 16 went to college for one year. He registered for college for academic year 2016/17 but never attended. He registered for college for academic year 2017/18 again no attendance at college.
I was originally paying via DD but ex contacted CSA to say I wasn’t paying - I was but not as much as she thought I should be. CSA actually reduced my monthly payment and what I didn’t know was I could have refused their involvement because I was paying via bacs direct to her bank account. Initially paying for two children ‘till I discovered through our divorce one child wasn’t biologically mine. Won’t gon into the heart break for all involved. My ex destroyed any contact with my child and I have had little to no contact for ten years. Since September 2016 I have been in monthly contact with child benefit. As most of you know child maintenance continues as long as child benefit claim is active. As well as money from myself my ex receives child tax credits for my son. I stopped paying in August this year texting her to tell her that since my son was not attending college she was defrauding not just myself but tax credits and child benefit. This has been ignored.
My wife and I contacted child benefit reported her for fraud to no avail. Letter upon letter to CSA and child benefit. We then approached our MP who raised a complaint with CSA and Child Benefit. CSA blamed child benefit. Eventually a letter arrived via complaints admitting Child Benefit had no resources to look into this.
I’m totally frustrated - I’m paying £600 a month now because the child maintenance options go on gross salary not net pay. My son has learned that it’s okay to do nothing and to lie to get money and there is no repercussions.
I should add I know my son is not attending college via phone calls from my ex’s family. They have made her aware she is committing fraud of the public purse as well as myself.
Has anyone any experience and advice on this please?
Apart from involving your MP, which you've already done, I can't suggest anything else unfortunately... what a shocking state of affairs when the very authorities that we depend on to get it right, are failing so badly.
Worst case scenario, you only have to pay until,he reaches 20just another few months and it will stop...not much of a consolation I know...sorry I can't be of any help.
Have you thought about approaching the college to get his attendance records, this might prove to the CB that she isn't entitled to payments.
All the best
I hope you don't mind but I'm going to delete your earlier post as it's an exact duplicate of this one, having two identical threads running simultaneously can be confusing!
Ah, that's where it went 😀 I was just about to reply to that earlier, but you've said what I was going to anyway.
Thanks Mojo for the feed back. It’s been so frustrating that despite everything we’ve done to try and resolve the matter we are up against a system that ignores benefit fraud.
As well as destroying my relationship with my child my ex will have taken 20 months money from me that she was not entitled to, The new child maintenance options is worse than it’s predecessor and like it’s predecessor It has no teeth to deal with fraud.
You might like to think about a civil claim through the small claims court, although there are no guarantees.
I'm surprised the MP is leaving it there, he could escalate up to the Omsbudsman for further action I believe.
All the best anyway.
I think going to go back to our MP and try the ombudsman is the best plan, Crazy that only child benifit can contact the college to ask for proof of attendance. I’m not sure they’d give me a print out of his attendance feel that may come under data protection.
If you query attendance with child maintenance options they contact child benefit and they in turn phone the mother to ask if child is attending. Her verbal say so is accepted while mine saying he’s not attending is not. It’s discrimination, the mother of my child lied for 9 years about me being the parent of a child born while we were together, The continuel injustice is soul destroying but drives me to keep going.
Thanks for all the advice. Much appreciated.
Hi John
If you have Parental Responsibility, the college should have to give you the records I would have thought. Uni would be a different story entirely but have a look round here.......
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