The parents who DON’T PAY
More parents than ever are receiving legal referrals for failing to pay child maintenance
THE number of parents having serious legal action taken against them for failing to make child maintenance payments is soaring - with more than 14 a day referred to enforcement agents.
If parents don’t comply with government-set child maintenance payments, they can be taken to court and ordered to pay the money.
However, if they still do not pay they will be referred to an enforcement agent - who can seize assets if the debt remains unpaid.
In 2017 alone some 5,200 cases were referred to enforcement agents. That’s more than double the 2,500 cases that were referred in 2016. The Child Maintenance Service exists for separated parents who are unable to arrange child maintenance payments between themselves. These payments help cover a child’s everyday living costs - like food and clothes. The Service calculates the amount of maintenance to be paid and parents can then choose the most appropriate way to arrange payments.
The basic rate of child maintenance is 12 per cent of the parent’s gross weekly income.
But the number of children, the income of the paying parent, and whether the paying parent is paying child maintenance to other children can all affect the amount of maintenance due.
Referrals to enforcement agents for non-payment remain open until all child maintenance and fees have been repaid.
By the end of 2017 some 3,700 cases that had been referred to enforcement agents over the years remained open.
There was some £177.1m of child maintenance still unpaid at the end of 2017 - up from £97.6m the previous year.
Gingerbread is a charity supporting single parent families.
Sumi Rabindrakumar, a research officer at the charity, said: “Child maintenance lifts around a fifth of single parent families on the lowest incomes out of poverty.
“When maintenance isn’t paid, children go without.
“As single parents repeatedly tell Gingerbread, unpaid maintenance is still a big – and increasing – problem.
“The Child Maintenance Service is often still slow to take action and get results when maintenance goes unpaid.” A DWP spokesperson said: “We are committed to ensuring that children whose parents are separated get the support they need. “Our new Child Maintenance Service is working better for families. “We are also strengthening the powers we have to enforce child maintenance payments and ensure that today’s children are supported by both parents. “We have a range of collection methods to ensure parents fulfil their financial responsibilities, including deducting money direct from bank accounts.”