CHILD SUPPORT- South Africa has implemented measures to tackle child maintenance defaulters, recently the Department of Justice and the Social Justice Foundation signed Memorandum Of Understanding(MOU) on 1st November 2024, with the Consumer Profile Bureau to blacklist defaulting parents with credit bureaus.
This move aims to enforce the Maintenance Act, which requires defaulters’ personal details to be forwarded to credit bureaus and providers.
In addition this decision comes as a response to the alarming rate of child maintenance defaulters, with approximately 70% of parents defaulting on payments within the first two years of a court order.
This collaboration seeks to hold defaulters accountable and ensure timely payments.
According to the Maintenance Act, failure to pay child maintenance can lead to severe consequences including legal proceedings, garnishee orders, fines, imprisonment, credit impact, property seizure and travel restrictions.
However, the Department of Justice is developing a system to facilitate the forwarding of defaulter details to credit bureaus, which will affect defaulters’ ability to secure credit.
Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development of South Africa Thembi Simelane’s Spokesperson Tsekiso Machike said, “Both the civil and criminal provisions of the act have provisions which require the forwarding of personal details of the maintenance defaulters who fail to pay child maintenance and have enforcement order judgments against them to the credit bureaus and credit providers.”
The implementation may take time, but this move signals a commitment to ensuring responsible child maintenance payments.
As the Department of Justice works to develop the necessary systems, defaulters are put on notice.
Photograph: Supplied
