CS payments?

[Gord Shell]

This might have been asked before but, can I be forced by the courts into automatic withdrawals from my account for CS? even if I have never missed a payment?

Thanks

[FL_Needs_To_Change]

No!
We were issued many repeated requests by both FRO and the ex's lawyers to have support automatically withdrawn from our account or garnished from an income source.

We sent one letter to FRO and CC"d the ex's lawyer, clearly explaining that there was zero cause for such a request, and that this was an excessive form of collection reserved for individuals that were consistently late or in non payment status, not for persons who have consistently met their financial obligation.

We never heard about this again, and have for the past 8 plus years’ forwarded payment through the mail. First directly to the ex, then the last two years to FRO.

[Gord Shell]

Can you explain the FRO? I have never heard about this until very recently, I visited their website...

So you eventually ended up paying through them? To me the FRO is for "bad" people, those who skip out on taking care of their children...I mean, come on they post pictures of wanted "non paying" parents.

from this thread doesn't seem like you or me!

[FL_Needs_To_Change]

No, the FRO is a vehicle so that the ex's have that much less to worry about.

Going through FRO also tracks payment history, and is not just meant for those that do not pay or "forget" to pay. We have never missed a payment!

In our case we wanted the FRO because at one point we would send payment to the ex and she would tell the courts that she didn't receive it.
The FRO was our way of eliminating that portion of stress. Not to mention there was no need to mention monetary issues, only issues around the child.

And I think that it is almost an automatic thing to handle payments through the FRO

[Gord Shell]

Can we initiate this, or is this for the ex and courts to do?

[Suchislife]

Not sure what happened in your case re:support order but our situation was having to WITHDRAW from FRO when the support order was initiated and then again at a change in amounts. Nowadays orders are sent to FRO unless you withdraw.

After a couple of years paying directly by cheque, in person, or by mail in advance, we were tired of being met with nothing but complaints and demands for post-dated cheques etc....

We changed to paying through the FRO to avoid stress, minimize discussion etc...

You can call them and talk to a client service representative.

Please keep in mind that my partner WAS NOT given the option of payment by cheque or cash to FRO and was informed that a garnishment notice was sent to his employer which initiated pay cheque garnishment.

This was OK in our situation because a bit every week is easier than a large amount scraped together for the first of the month. Just make sure you are clear on everything before you commit.

If your EX is pressuring you just because of her not wanting to be handed her $ in front of the child maybe you could arrange that you mail her a cheque, money order, or make a third party deposit into her bank account.

I just mention this because there can be problems with the FRO. You have no leeway if your financial situation changes or flexilbility. If you find yourself falling into arrears (by no fault of your own ~ i.e. job loss, medical) it can be hard to sort everything out.