Non-Resident Parents

The most common problems faced by non-resident parents are:-

Incorrect assessments
Lengthy backdating of assessments leading to excessive arrears
Penalty assessments taking no account of actual circumstances
Assessments that do not reflect new circumstances
Excessive enforcement action
Lack of notification
Unreasonable delays on the part of the CSA
Maladministration by the CSA
Not being listened to
CSA ignorance of the law

We successfully deal with problems like those listed above every day.
Below is just a sample of non-resident parents we have helped over the years.

Success Stories

Mr K - came to us with an appeal he had lodged claiming that the parent with care had ceased to be habitually resident in the UK. During the interview with Mr K we ascertained that he and the parent with care had reconciled briefly, shortly after the CSA became involved. We advised Mr K that a precedent existed whereby the case could be closed from the date of reconciliation and we added this ground to the appeal. We then successfully argued both grounds of the appeal at a tribunal who then ordered that the case be closed with effect from 1997 which would result in Mr K receiving a full refund of all child support paid from 1997 - more than £40,000.00.

Mr N - was facing committal to prison for non-payment and the CSA were claiming he owed over £40,000.00. We arranged for representation at the committal hearing and the judge agreed that Mr N should not go to prison but instead he should make reasonable contributions towards the arrears. We then converted any outstanding penalty assessments reducing the weekly amounts from over £100.00 to £5.60 per week resulting in the arrears being reduced by £38,000.00.

Mr S - came to see us bringing with him a letter from the CSA claiming he owed £110,000.00 going back to 1993. They were also charging him for a child that wasn’t his and we therefore removed this child from the assessments. We also converted the penalty assessment imposed by the CSA thereby removing the whole of the £110,000.00 worth of arrears.

Mr A - had an assessment in place that did not take into account any housing costs or the fact that he had a child living in his household. We appealed the assessment which was then corrected and at the same time we were able to correct a previous assessment going back 3 years which meant the parent with care had been substantially overpaid. This was then taken into account within the new assessment which was further reduced in order to claw back the over-payment.

Mr G - had serious mental health issues and was being vigorously pursued by the CSA. We put forward a case for a ‘good cause’ decision and the CSA accepted that their involvement should come to an end. The assessment was cancelled and the case closed.

Mr O - had an assessment in place that did not reflect his true circumstances: the CSA had treated his relocation expenses as income resulting in a very high assessment. When Mr O pointed this out to the CSA they ignored him. We became involved and the CSA corrected their mistake producing a much lower assessment.

Mr B - had arrears of over £25,000.00, some of which covered the period when he was the parent with care. The child then went to live with Mr B full-time and we were able to successfully argue that all arrears should be written off.

Mr T - was not aware of the CSA’s involvement until many years later at which point he was liable for arrears of over £76,000.00. These arrears accrued as a result of penalty assessments which we were then able to convert utilising Mr T’s actual circumstances. This resulted in all arrears being written off.

Mr G - had the bailiffs knocking on his door demanding over £27,000.00. We became involved and established that the CSA did not have a case against Mr G and consequently the bailiffs were called off.

Mr S - had overnight contact with his children totalling an average of 3 nights per week which the CSA refused to believe. We therefore appealed their decision and the assessment was corrected to take into account the overnight care which in turn substantially reduced Mr S’s liability.

Mr A - continued to be assessed by the CSA despite informing them that both children had ceased to qualify. The CSA pointed out to Mr A that the parent with care was still in receipt of child benefit and therefore, as far as they were concerned, this meant that the children still qualified. We pointed out that receipt of child benefit is not the measurement when establishing whether or not a child qualifies for child support and the law is very clear on this. After providing the CSA with the relevant legislation pertaining to qualifying children they conceded and the case was closed with all arrears being written off.

Mr O - undertook seasonal work and was assessed only on income he earned during his busy months. We therefore appealed the assessment and the CSA agreed to look at his income on an annual basis which would then reflect his average pay. This resulted in the assessment being more than halved.

There are many, many more cases, too numerous to mention here, where we have significantly reduced assessments or obtained nil assessments . We have also successfully argued shared care disputes and jurisdictional issues on our clients behalf. What frustrates many non-resident parents is the CSA’s refusal to believe or listen to their side of the story. It is particularly difficult when the non-resident parent has a new family to take care of who often feel that they are being treated unfairly and this can cause tensions within the family. At Child Support Specialists Ltd. we understand the law and are able to ensure that the CSA applies the law correctly resulting in a much fairer outcome.