Parents who fail to pay child support could find themselves unable to get a mortgage or a loan under Coalition Government plans to hit their credit score.
Tory and LibDem ministers are keen to finally crack what they admit has been a difficult and long-running problem.
A parliamentary answer to Labour MP Pamela Nash last year showed lone parents in Scotland were owed more than £330 million from former partners.
Under the new plans, from next March fathers and mothers who do not pay risk harming their own credit rating.
As a result they could find themselves turned down for personal loans, mortgages and credit cards, ministers say. Even mobile phone contracts could be affected under the proposals.
Those not rejected could find they are charged a higher rate of interest, according to the Department for Work and Pensions.
However, the measure would be used against only a small number of "deadbeat" parents.
The proposals would allow officials to share information on payment records with credit reference agencies.
But data would only be forwarded on where a "liability order" has been made.
These affect only a small minority of child maintenance cases, and require a court order legally recognising the debt.
About 12,000 liability orders were granted across the UK last year.
All parents would be informed before their information was shared.
Ministers also emphasised that those with a good payment record could ask for their information to shared to boost their credit rating.
The Coalition says it hopes the change will have such a strong deterrent effect and get more money to children and families.
The new move follows criticism earlier this year when new measures introduced fees for separated parents who fail to reach an agreement over child support.
Campaigners warned the reform would hurt lone parents, and their children, who had done nothing wrong.
Steve Webb, the Liberal Democrat child maintenance minister, said: "For too long, a minority of absent parents have got away with failing to pay maintenance, leaving families without that financial support."
He said that the Coalition was determined to take action to tackle irresponsible behaviour and support families.
He added: "I would hope that we see this power used very little, because the deterrent effect of a possible negative mark on a person's credit rating will convince those who have previously failed to pay towards their children's upbringing to do the right thing."
The Child Maintenance Service was introduced in 2012 and is designed to eventually replace the much-criticised Child Support Agency.
SNP work and pensions spokesman Dr Eilidh Whiteford MP said: "While most parents who have separated manage to agree child maintenance arrangements, some parents find this impossible. Yet children still need support. Too often however administrative problems have led to delays in parents receiving child maintenance.
"It's imperative that the Child Maintenance Service works efficiently to ensure these children receive the support they are due."
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