Hi, I've been divorced now for two years and I'm really struggling financially whilst my ex-wife seems to have no change in her lifestyle prior to her divorcing me. We live about 10miles away from each other which is great for being able to see my two daughters however it is the expectation that I am the one who has to pickup and drop-off when I have them. I see both children every other Wednesday and every other weekend so on the Wednesday I have to make a journey to pick them up to then drive back and then take them into school which is local to my ex-wife. When I've asked her about whether she could drop the children off her response is 'if you want to see the children you will make the effort.' or how disruptive it is for her. Being self employed I have to take time off work on a Wednesday to pick them up so lose half the afternoon in money as well as increased fuel costs.
I had originally wanted 50/50 for our children however my ex wife used delaying tactics during the divorce and financial settlement which emptied what savings I had and so in the end I had to accept 110 days a year just to prevent her from crippling me financially which is what she promised to do.
What rights do I have (if any) to get her to do more when it comes to the children travelling between houses. Its impacting my time at work, I go through more petrol and don't get me wrong I love seeing our children but when the only thing you can offer to do with them is something that has to be free it just doesn't feel right.
I'm sure I'm not the only person who's been/going through this and would appreciate any advice on how to handle this situation.
Hi,
I understand your situation. I am also self-employed, and chose this route so I can make more time to have kids. I am 7 miles away from kids. I drive and ex does not, so I did not see point in arguing about the transport, and her poor timekeeping. If your paying maintenance through CMS, you can claim an expense for fuel cost to pick up and drop kids, if its £10 a week and above.
