Government agency puts stop to house sale

In the first case of its kind, the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission has just prevented the sale of a house going through.

Had the sale proceeded, the Commission could actually have applied to the High Court to have it reversed.

The owner, a man in the North-West, owes more than £78,000 in maintenance. He paid nothing for 12 years, despite being chased by the Child Support Agency – now part of the Commission.

The Commission has new powers to apply for freezing orders to prevent – or even reverse – a sale if it can convince the High Court of its case.

The High Court can issue ‘setting aside’ orders which are designed to stop parents putting assets in the names of new partners or relatives in order to escape having to provide for their children.
 
In this case, the property had been advertised on a well-known website. The CSA noted that, despite the father not having paid child maintenance, the property had been subject to numerous costly improvements, including a luxury kitchen and home cinema. It also noted that the sale was chain-free.

“This case sends a clear message to all parents who have run up substantial maintenance arrears,” said Dame Janet Paraskeva, chair of the Child Maintenance Commission.

“Step-by-step the Commission is closing the escape routes for parents who think they can cheat their children out of money from which they are entitled to benefit. No longer can houses, cars and other valuable assets be sold off quickly to prevent the CSA taking possession of them. Those who cynically transfer the legal ownership of property into the names of their new partners risk having those transactions reversed.”