Parents pushed to breaking point by Child Maintenance Service, BBC told
Mothers, like Katy, describe battles to make ex-partners pay, while fathers say they have been wrongly charged thousands.
Parents are reporting overwhelming stress and financial hardship due to the Child Maintenance Service (CMS), according to BBC Panorama. Mothers and fathers alike have complained about the CMS's inability to secure child maintenance payments from ex-partners, leading to mounting debt and personal hardship. One mother's arrears have reached nearly £10,000, forcing her to seek help from food banks.
Another parent experienced anxiety and stress from administrative errors, while a father claimed his account was mistakenly added a child who was not his. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), which oversees the CMS, claims to successfully manage most cases, but acknowledges some failures. The CMS's approach relies on the paying parent's income, without considering both parents' financial situations.
Collect and Pay, a service for non-direct payments, involves a 20% fee and 4% charge, leading to a backlog of unprocessed cases. CMS errors and delays have left some parents in severe debt and unable to provide for their children.
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