CSA

[jdes26]

YEH its a fair society ! rubbish nothings fair men are not equal in this society

[jack1966]

here here, and there just the ones reported in the news

[loopinlouie]

Hear hear Erika.

 

 

jdes26 you make finally some sensible points regarding keeping receipts of payments etc. To be honest though its common sence and if you dont you have let yourself down. When split even if amicably you have to protect yourself, thats why resident parents tend to use the csa. I think you are angry with yourself at being so trusting, fair enough. Maybe anyone reading your comment will gain something by it.

 

But calm down and move on. We live and learn.

[ErikaPNP]

I DONT MIND PAYING......... i mind paying WHEN IM NOT WORKING do u understand this????????????????????????????????

 

If you aren't working, then either you have a means to support yourself or you are claiming benefit. The maximum they can take from your benefit is £5.00 per week.

 

That sum taken from benefit does not add up to 20%, it adds up to 12.86%.

 

With 4 kids I don't know why you are paying 20% - that's the current rate for two kids. Three or more is 25%.

 

40% applies if a person is in arrears.

 

if you have no proof that you have paid that money then you will be liable to pay back arrears.

This is absolute tosh. CSA is payable from the date the MEF is sent to the NRP, not from when the couple seperated. They cannot go back any further than the date of the MEF for claiming arrears.

[jdes26]

ERIKA

 

SITE TEAM

 

I TAKE IT YOU MUST KNOW YOUR STUFF..... im self employed so when i stopped working i got nothing from jsa nothing at all....................................................... so any advice ?

[ErikaPNP]

ERIKA

 

SITE TEAM

 

I TAKE IT YOU MUST KNOW YOUR STUFF..... im self employed so when i stopped working i got nothing from jsa nothing at all....................................................... so any advice ?

 

It would be more appropriate if you started your own thread on that rather than on someone else's thread, (you're also likely to get a higher response) but more details will need to be given; it could be down to a number of reasons.

 

It could be to do with contributions, as JSA © requires sufficient class 1 NI payments to be paid in the qualifying years, whereas the self employed normally pay class 2. JSA (ib) focuses on total household income, where if the household income is above the applicable amount, JSA will be reduced as it would be for savings between 6000 and 16000 (by £1 per week for every £250 or part thereof between the two figures). Income or savings above the threshold would disqualify entitlement entirely. Or it could be that your claim didn't satisfy the conditions. For example, if you were self employed but no work was coming your way and you were awaiting work for your business but were not wishing to find alternative employment in the meantime, your claim would not satisfy the criteria of actively seeking and available for employment.

 

Post a new thread in the forum about this and one of the DWP bods might respond.

[jdes26]

im sorry erika

 

i have nothing

 

no savings

i paid class 2 ni.... but i paid 25years worth of ni over 50k

the JSA SAID i had no entitlement to allowance that means if i didnt find work there was no one yes no one to support me..

now at the same time my ex didnt care about my work situation ALL SHE CARED ABOUT WAS THE MONEY

so what im asking from an experianced member of the team is who is there to help me when im in need?

i think i already know!

[ErikaPNP]

Right, if you don't have a partner with income, have no savings, were fit for and actively seeking and available for employment, on what basis did JSA turn you down?

 

It should give the reason for disentitlement on their decision letter.

[jdes26]

I Live With My Friend And As They Were Working They Turned Me Down I Mean What Has It Got To Do With The Person Im Sharing My Place With?

[jdes26]

And Yes They Categorically Turned Me Down

[ErikaPNP]

I Live With My Friend And As They Were Working They Turned Me Down I Mean What Has It Got To Do With The Person Im Sharing My Place With?

 

So let me get this right - they refused you on the grounds that your friend's income was too high for you to qualify.

 

They cannot turn you down for JSA on that basis, what a friend earns has nothing whatsoever to do with a JSA claim, even if you are sharing a house.

 

Have you still got the decision letter? If not I'd be asking for a reprint as part of a SAR, if yes, submit a SAR for all other information, and you can take this further. How long since the date of the decision? (This will be the date at the top of the decision letter).

[jdes26]

as my so called partner or the person i was living with was earning money they couldnt giv me any as

 

1/ im self employed

2/ i pay class 2 national insurance and it wasnt enough to qualify for benefits

bearing in mind ive NEVER claimed in 25 years

[privatehudson]

As Erika has stated a single thread dedicated to your situation is better than spreading out your problem over a number of threads.

 

There's a reason why the definition of a partner is important and that its read out in full since there is occasional problems with people's circumstances being misunderstood. Often people answer the question after the first line without hearing what they are really answering. When you originally made the claim online or on the phone you would have asked you something along the lines of the following:

 

Do you have a partner?

 

We use partner to mean a person you are either married to, a civil partner of, or living with as if you are married to them or a civil partner of them. They also need to be someone who is:

 

Aged 16 or over

A member of the same household

Temporarily not living at the address.

 

This is a very important question as if you state yes at this point the claim is no longer about you alone but both you and the partner, so will include any earnings or savings each of you have. I presume that you answered yes to the question as the only other way they can usually take a friend's details into account is if they disagree with your answer and decide you are Living Together as Husband and Wife. That is usually done by a decision maker, not someone on the phone or in the jobcentre.

 

If you feel that the friend is a partner based on the above then the decision is likely to be a correct one. If however you do not agree that the friend is partner because (for example) you consider that you are not part of the same household or not in a relationship with them then the decision needs revisiting and you may well qualify for income based benefit on the grounds that you do not have savings or a partner who is working at the moment.

 

Should you actually be receiving some income from anything like self employment however that will affect any award amount since you already have some money to live on.

Edited February 3, 2010 by privatehudson

[ErikaPNP]

As Private Hudson says if the person living with you is considered to be your partner and their income is above the threshold, you don't qualify.

 

There are several factors which should be taken into consideration when deciding if someone is living together as husband and wife/civil partners (LTAHAW/CP). The facts that are taken into consideration are here

 

Did you tell them the person was your partner or did they decide it was? If so, on what basis? Do you disagree that the person was your partner? If so, on what basis?

[Rachie1973]

Am I the only person that doesn't think £80 a week from £400 is actually that much in maintenance?

 

And before I'm jumped on, yes I am an 'ex wife' with an ex paying maintenance

 

However, I'm also a Stepmother paying maintenance as well.

 

So yes I do have both sides to draw experience from.

[ibis]

No it doesnt seem unreasonable, but if you have other debts, children and rent and ctax to pay it mounts up. Also trying to provide for the children equally then becomes difficult.

[Rachie1973]

No it doesnt seem unreasonable, but if you have other debts, children and rent and ctax to pay it mounts up. Also trying to provide for the children equally then becomes difficult.

 

 

The CSA use the old argument that 'if the children lived with you they would come before existing debts, and you would need to live somewhere affordable'. I'm not necessarily saying its right, but I see their point.

 

They reduce the original payment to allow for children from the new relationship.

 

And equally never works when talking about stepfamilies etc.

 

We used to have residence of my stepson, and his mother never paid a penny in maintenance. Yet she would buy him designer trainers etc whilst my kids existed in £15 cheapies because we couldnt afford the designer ones.

 

Now he lives with her, comes here and still has loads more then the children living in our home.

 

Its unfair, but a sad fact of life.

[ibis]

Too true Rachie, Myself am only step parent have no kids of my own, husband has 3. Problem is that i want to treat all the kids fairly and thats hard because we dont have the money to do that. The system does totally suck, but unfortunately its the people who wilfully dont pay, that makes it hard for the rest of us. In regards to existing debts yeah they may well come first, but if the gas and electric is cut off and the rent etc dont get paid we have no where to take the kids. We live in a tiny one bedroom flat and have 2 kids staying over so they get to see their dad, the pwc have 3+ bedroom houses. Because we aint got custody we aint entitled to anywhere bigger. We make do though, its cosy lol. We would go to the ends of the earth for the kids, when the car got repossed we got the bus and walked 2 miles to see them. My husbands a great father and i think im an ok step mum, full respect to you rach. xxxxx

[jdes26]

£80 from 400 is ALOT if u gota rent food travel c/tax elect gas phone fuel food esp when u live as a single nrp think about it....................................................

[Gruffle]

the CSA have been nothing but trouble for me over the last couple of years

 

I don't have a problem paying for my kids, what gets to me is that all the CSA has done in my case is give ammunition to a vengeful mother.

 

For the life of me, I can't understand how CSA payments aren't means tested on both sides, my ex's household income is literally treble what mine is at the minute, what i give her she calls a "pittance" but 15% of my wage atm is killing me (partner is on maternity leave) and she readily admits that she is only claiming it because she can.

 

Grrr.

 

Currently getting my MP to slap them about a bit...hopefully.

[jdes26]

hi gruffle

 

another CSA fan club member

What you must remember is the csa are an evil outfit that supports bitter and twisted ex/pwc/sith's situations. What ever u pay will never be enough as there minds and souls are so twisted inside they cant let go of the past. I mean she uses the words "pittance" questions u ask yourself WHY TAKE IT THEN ??? and because she can??? why she say this.

I have got over the fact i have to pay ive been doing it 4 5years but only 3months through csa. What u need to do is manipulate the system and you can do this by being self employed and a GOOD OLD RECCESSION. I mean in my circunstances i was paying my ex £400 a month and whilst i was struggling from lack of work i was paying her 200/300 per month and really struggling but NEVER i mean NEVER missed a payment in this time since we split this was not enough hence the good old CSA came my way! how nice and compassionate .... i left her btw cudnt take the moaning. anyway the csa assessed me on 6months earnings and the new rate was agreed £340 all cool now the ex is £60 worse off..... but this is where the real treat comes i submit my accounts april 5th and it looks as if my earnings after tax is £15k divided by 52 = £288 divide by 20% = £57 even better now i am getin court order to see my kids EVERY wk end like it has been 4 4 half years until she changed the rules as she wanted more money ! but i get a further discount as im having them 52 times a year that brings my payments down to £45 per week and she is gona go off on one and there is NOTHING and i mean NOTHING she can do ....... if only she had weathered the storm i would of still been paying £100 per week glad... but she has shot herself in the foot and i cant wait to break the good news.... now in 2011 april the 5th im not gona submit my self assessment im gona wait til 11pm january the 30th to submit it and yet again the csa cant do jack ...... god i love the csa they have made me £50 a week better off for 19 months yipeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[jdes26]

and just remember one other thing the CSA are not LAW they like to think so but there not..... and they cant take wht u havent got... the worst thing they have ever done is to get a DEDUCTION OF EARNINGS hence SELF EMPLOYED IS THE ONLY WAY TO GO! priceless

[vinegarvera]

Hmm my ex is self employed, reckons he can only pay himself £100 pweek, suppose that is true as he has his large 6 bed house, properties abroad and 2 new mercedes convertibles with soft tops to pay for, not to mention his designer clothes for him his new partner and her 2 kids.....

 

CSA reckon he can only afford to give our child £5 a week!! Luckily though me (and my husband are not on a very good wage,) my husband sees the child as his own and we bring him up together £5 a week? he can shove it!!!

[Desperate Daniella]

As I have said before, there are grasping women, and very mean men.

 

And good women and good men.

 

DDxx

[Maggie_moo]

Everyone's situation and experiences are different. My eldest's father has never paid a penny (or had contact) all her life. I've worked in some dead-end crappy jobs to support us. I still think I got a good deal - a lovely woman I'm proud to call mine and a grandson to boot. He chose not to pay or have imput in bringing her up despite my best efforts and that's time you never get back. He can keep his money, my daughter's priceless