DEFAULTING ON MAINTENANCE HAS MORE SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES THAN YOU THINK.

A maintenance order is a binding Court order which sets out the financial contributions one party is required to pay the other party. Maintenance orders contain a variety of details including which party is in need of the support, such as an ex-spouse in the form of spousal maintenance, or children in the form of child maintenance, as well as the exact manner in which maintenance is to be paid. It can be either in the form of a cash component (such as an amount of R5 000.00 payable to the other party on or before the first day of each month), payments directly to a service provider on a monthly basis (in the case of school fees, WiFi or medical aid), or both.
The purpose of maintenance orders is to ensure the person in need of support is able to maintain a certain standard of living by ordering a contribution by one party to another. 

Once a Maintenance Order has been granted, you become legally bound to its terms. 

South African Courts do not accept financial hardship as an excuse for the non-payment of a Maintenance Order. In a case before the Pretoria High Court, the Court marked its displeasure at a maintenance defaulter, Mr. M, by ordering him to undergo provisional sequestration, after falling into maintenance arrears of over half a million rand, which was payable to his ex-wife.

The consequence of this is that Mr. M’s assets will now be under the control of a Trustee to be appointed by the Master of the High Court, and he may no longer be entitled to acquire any new assets, or dispose of any of his own assets, without prior approval from the Trustee.

If your financial circumstances have legitimately taken a turn for the worse, and are not expected to improve for the foreseeable future, it is advisable to launch an application for a reduction in maintenance before arrears accumulate.