Can i take CSA to court

[lee6370]

Does anyone know if this is possible?

 

The CSA have taken money based on info that i have never seen, i was promised a complete breakdown of what they claim i owe but 5 weeks later i still haven't got it.

 

They also promised to review my case but have so far failed to do so.

 

I have evidence (have given it to them) that there claim is incorrect, but they have so far choosen to ingnore it.

 

They have also failed to follow procedure.

 

So given that they failed to prove i owe the money, and failed to review my claim and failed to follow procedure, can i take them to court to reclaim the money i have paid?

 

and before anyone thinks i'm just trying to get out of paying for my kids, i looked after them 5 days a week and ex had them weekends, so i know their assessment is wrong because i was the PWC.

[WWOW]

The CSA is government department. If you don't get any replies then file a claim in the County Court, or if less than £5,000 use Money Claim Online & see what comes.

 

Has anyone actually done this?

[lee6370]

Money claim online, states you can't use it to claim against a goverment department, so how do you go about suing them?

[jannercobbler]

Have you done a S.A.R. (Subject access request) to them? they have 40 days to produce the information when asked.

 

Have you put your complaint in writing to them?

 

If you have done and you are still not happy then I usually refer my case to I.C.E. (independent case examiner) their website is The Independent Case Examiner Website - Home Page they will then sort out things for you and can order the CSA to pay compensation.

 

Hope this helps.

[Tigstheterror]

Yes you can take them to court, they think they are crown imune but they are not, you can prosecute them for misconduct in public office. Firstly request your data protection prints and make sure you send it recorded delivery. They have 40 consecutive days from the date they receive it to comply. Do not be fobbed off with we have a backlog and cannot get your prints out to you, the Law states 40 consecutive days and they have to adhere to the law.

 

The CSA have taken money based on info that i have never seen, i was promised a complete breakdown of what they claim i owe but 5 weeks later i still haven't got it.

 

 

They also promised to review my case but have so far failed to do so.

 

I have evidence (have given it to them) that there claim is incorrect, but they have so far choosen to ingnore it.

 

They have also failed to follow procedure.

 

So given that they failed to prove i owe the money, and failed to review my claim and failed to follow procedure, can i take them to court to reclaim the money i have paid?

 

and before anyone thinks i'm just trying to get out of paying for my kids, i looked after them 5 days a week and ex had them weekends, so i know their assessment is wrong because i was the PWC.

 

Write a lettter requesting a breakdown of what they claim you owe and request that under the Freedom of Information Act, Under the same act request why they have chosen to ignore the evidence you have sent in to them and why they have failed to folow their own procedure for the procurement of money through false pretences which is a criminal offence under the Misconduct Of Public Office. they have 20 working days to respond to you by law.

[patdavies]

Write a lettter requesting a breakdown of what they claim you owe and request that under the Freedom of Information Act, Under the same act request why they have chosen to ignore the evidence you have sent in to them and why they have failed to folow their own procedure for the procurement of money through false pretences which is a criminal offence under the Misconduct Of Public Office. they have 20 working days to respond to you by law.

 

Ain't going to fly, I'm afraid.

 

The FoI Act has a specific exemption for personal data (for that the DPA 1998 exists and S.7 of that Act is the authority for a SAR) - so a breakdown of what is owed is personal to the individual and would never be available via FoI Act.

 

Similarly, the question of why they have chosen to ignore both their own procedures and the evidence presented would be a decision rather than 'information' - they do not have to explain their methodology under the FoI ACt unless they are following a documented process - in which case, you may be entitled to a copy of the document concerned. There is no redress via FoI Act if that process has not been followed, but the existence of the process documentation (and evidence that they have failed to follow it) may provide evidence for a formal complaint.

[stardust_john]

In my case they kept quoting we are not a goverment department anymore and nothing to do with them. This was in response to me querying why they were not liasing with income support with regards to payment details as they said they would. They paid monies into the wrong account and it was eaten up by overdraft and didnt give a ****. I was told I had to tell income support when the payments started and I did only to be then told well we inform them anyhow.

 

Am I going mad or are they just then wasting peoples time in changing this and that when they still just mess it up.

[Tigstheterror]

They are still a government body it is only the new cases that come under CMEC, they are trying delay tactics which they will try to get out of. We run an association that is helping fathers fight this corrupt agency and we have won three court cases by highlighting the unlawful procedures they have used. you can look us up at dead beat dads association. Anybody wanting the web site address message me and i will forward it to you

[andie_303]

I am on the other side of the CSA fence - trying to get money out of an ex that refuses to pay and deliberately lies and decieves the CSA but maybe I can still be of some help.

 

The CSA is a government body and even CMEC who deals with new cases is a government body so if an operator has told anyone this they are confused or lying (the operator that is). The CSA/CMEC is incredibly back logged with the amount of work that for whatever reason has not been completed and CMEC are now supposed to be reviewing all cases as you can imagine this is gonna take time. However this does not help parent like me or you that need the money. I used to call the CSA every 2 days (without fail) asking for an update on my case, what were they doing, who was doing that etc but it was 10 months of false promises and assurances I complained twice and still to this day 14 months later have not had a reply they promise will be 10 days max. in the end I had enough and went to my MP and laid it all out for him, I showed him correspondance I had sent that had not been replied to I also took him a stack of my itemised phonebills showing the calls I had made and the costs I had endured in trying to get them to do their job. My Mp took up the fight on my behalf and told me there was a dedicated team that deals with complaints made by MP's on behalf of their constiuants and that they normally get a reply in under 10 days. Lo and behold after 5 days I had a reply with a detailed explanation as to where my case was what decisions had been made and how they had arrived at those. And the funniest thing despite me providing my ex partners work details 12 months previous which they told me they couldn't substantiate at the time suddenly with a little MP prodding it was not only substantiated but a back order for support processed.

Now I still do not recieve any money as my ex partner is refusing to pay it (not because it's wrong just because he's a loser) and CSA has taken him to court so they still get weekly calls from me asking what is going on.

 

My MP was invaluable in getting the information I needed and I would reccommend anyone to go down this route - they get you access and fast responses a lot better than any independant complaints advisor or anything like that.

My MP also gave me the money to cover the phone calls I had to make prior to him getting involved.

 

I hope this helps

[ddelo]

Between 2004 and 2010, the CSA did not reply directly to a single letter I sent them. They were deducting the CSA payments from my salary, but my daughter left full time education before she was 18, both events occurring in 2008.

 

It was only when I left my job last September (therefore salary deduction stopped), that I finally got a standard letter informing me my liability ended on 29/08/2008!!!

 

I wrote back to them detailing the total amount I should have paid, and what I actually paid & demanded the refund of £8½k. It took 2 recorded delivery letters headed "complaint" with copies to my MP, AND a telephone call in December before I actually received my first direct response from this department. They acknowledged their error & agreed the repayment, which I received a couple of weeks ago. I also received a "consolatory payment" of £75 which apparently is not compensation, but an acknowledgement of the poor service I had received. Very welcome, but derisory given the massive stress & upset trying to get them to respond to their errors over 6 years.

 

In my letter I demanded not only the repayment, but also interest on the money they wrongly stole from me, compensation for the distress & financial hardship and an apology. I've had the first & last items, but I want to know if its possible to take out a small claims action for interest & damages. I'm about to resort to the online small claims procedure!

 

Thanks for any tips, guidance, advice you might be able to offer.

 

Dave

[CSA in a nutcase]

Yes, but only for actions outside of those provided by legislation. First step is a complaint in the magistrates court under MCA 1980 section 111, second step (assuming they don't reply within a reasonable time or refuse your complaint by stating it is out of time) appeal their decision and ask for a statement of case to a court of higher jurisdiction. This used to be the high court but that has now changed to the County Court. For CSA actions outside of the legislation (unlawful) a civil action can be brought under the law of TORT.

 

Article 6 ECHR includes providing a court that meets the requirements of Article 6