AbstractOver 3,000 men are imprisoned each year for maintenance default. At any one time there are on average about 300 men in prison for this reason. It costs the State over one and a quarter million pounds a year to keep these men in prison. Yet, despite concern with overcrowding, no initiative is being taken to remove the sanction of imprisonment. This article surveys available evidence on who is imprisoned and argues the case for abolition. In particular the inappropriateness of using criminal sanctions to enforce family obligations is stressed. The case for imprisonment is usually grounded in deterrence. This argument is considered critically.