CSA and Mortgage payments

I have recently separated from my wife. We are currently working out a Separation Agreement between us.

I have agreed to pay the joint mortgage and joint loans on the family home.

Can you please advise as to whether I am still liable to pay child maintenance and any utility bills.

Hi and welcome to Wiki community.

Perhaps you could let us know more about your circumstances i.e. length of marriage, childrens ages, both working or not, pension provisions, assets and liabilities etc. The more info you divulge, the more accurate responses you'll get from the forum. The site is fab with people sharing experiences etc and of course some posters are from the legal world so know what they are talking about (not me tho!) lol.

Not knowing your personal circumstances, I can only comment on the Child Maintenance side.

Pretty sure it will depend on who is deemed the main carer for the children and then who is in receipt of the Child Benefit payments?

I assume you have left the home and the child(ren) live with mum in which case regardless of what arrangements you have for paying mortgage etc., you should be looking to pay at least 15% of your net income for one child and 20% for two children. This amount is reduced by 1/7th for every night that your children stay OVERNIGHT in your care. That formula is the current way that the CSA would calculate the amount you should pay towards their care - seems much fairer system now rather than the horror of years ago.

In my circumstances, I was paying nearly double that calculation. When stbx turned bitter (most do i'm afraid!), she reported me to the CSA and they worked out I was paying a lot more than I had to. Silly moo shot herself in the foot!

The payments are meant to pay towards the children's care and not to subsidise her income, going out and spending on new clothes and nightclubs etc!

Good luck with an amicable outcome, stay focused, sensible and fair and hopefully it'll work out for you.

FS