How do I Recover Child Support Overpayment?

Like the rest of your divorce terms, nothing is truly set “in stone,” which means as your life changes, your obligations and requirements could change with them. This includes the terms regarding child support. When something changes, such as employment, living location, or any other major life event, the amount or necessity of child support could also change with it. This means it’s perfectly possible for a parent who is obligated to pay child support to accidentally overpay for a month or even several. When this is the case, how can you go about getting your much-needed money back? On this blog, we’ll take a look at your options.

Write a Letter

Unfortunately, the laws are written in ways which make it extremely difficult to hold child support disbursement agencies financially responsible for any errors they commit. Often times they’ll demand that you pay a certain amount, distribute it to your former spouse or children, and then discover the error later, once the money has already disappeared. When this is the case, you could try writing a letter to the agency explaining how the error was their responsibility and demanding reimbursement for the mistake, but that may or may not be effective.

Take It Up With Your Ex

Unfortunately, you may need to take the issue up with your spouse directly. Try talking to them, explaining the situation, and asking if you can get the money sent back to you. If they agree, you can arrange with the court for a temporary modification of your child support orders that fits both of your needs until the debt has been repaid. However, they are under no obligation to agree to these terms. Should they refuse, you may have to file a lawsuit against them.

Whatever you do, do not stop paying your child support obligation. If you fail to pay your child support on time, you could face consequences such as a bank levy, wage garnishment, and even a negative impact on your credit report until you are fully paid on your obligations, even if your spouse refuses to return the overpayment.