Farmboy Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 Ok, hypothetical situation: Mr S has a child of primary/secondary school age to a previous relationship but communications break down for one reason or another and the man refuses to pay maintenance towards the upkeep of his first child due to demands of his new wife (Mrs S) and baby. Mrs S basically decides that she doesn't want him supporting his first child when he has a new baby and wife to provide for. Mr S now claims he has an ongoing health complaint that prevents him from working and is claiming benefits to pay the bills. Would Mr S be able to claim benefits for 2 children despite the fact that he is only providing for one of them? We suspect that Mr S has declared that he is paying maintenance for both children and therefore claiming benefit for them even though his first child receives no financial support from his father whatsoever. Is there anyone or does anyone know of someone who currently has to pay child maintenance while unemployed/unable to work and if so is there any financial help available towards making those payments. We basically want to know if Mr S is able to claim money for his first child's upkeep if he declares that he's paying regular child maintenance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeadingNorth Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 I was under the impression that child benefit can only be paid to whoever has custody of the child - which, it appears from your hypothetical scenario, would be the child's mother. And the second point, of course, would be that it doesn't matter a bent fig what Mrs S. thinks he should or should not pay towards the upkeep of his first child - the CSA will decide how much he should pay, and if necessary will take it out of his benefits before he even gets them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farmboy Posted February 19, 2012 Author Share Posted February 19, 2012 ... it doesn't matter a bent fig what Mrs S. thinks he should or should not pay towards the upkeep of his first child... Our thoughts exactly, she's a bit crackers though to be honest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bubble3082 Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 Thats correct - benefit paid for the child goes to the parent who the child lives with. I only know of one exception and thats when the parent is under 16 themselves, in which case the grandparent claims it on their behalf. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whatwhat Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 Ok, hypothetical situation: Mr S has a child of primary/secondary school age to a previous relationship but communications break down for one reason or another and the man refuses to pay maintenance towards the upkeep of his first child due to demands of his new wife (Mrs S) and baby. Mrs S basically decides that she doesn't want him supporting his first child when he has a new baby and wife to provide for. Mr S now claims he has an ongoing health complaint that prevents him from working and is claiming benefits to pay the bills. Would Mr S be able to claim benefits for 2 children despite the fact that he is only providing for one of them? We suspect that Mr S has declared that he is paying maintenance for both children and therefore claiming benefit for them even though his first child receives no financial support from his father whatsoever. Is there anyone or does anyone know of someone who currently has to pay child maintenance while unemployed/unable to work and if so is there any financial help available towards making those payments. We basically want to know if Mr S is able to claim money for his first child's upkeep if he declares that he's paying regular child maintenance. The quick answer is no. Unless you get child benefit for the child you get no state help for the child. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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