This area of divorce is a nightmare. Having got through the emotional horror of divorce and then the battling for finances and a monthly maintenance if that is reasonable, a lot of women suffer when it comes to the pension area – quite possibly because either not much was set up or because they hadn’t given that aspect much thought. What happens if the woman is no longer working full time, so earning a much smaller wage – when the ex husband retires is he still able to pay maintenance? If not, are they going to able to save any money towards their future?
Apparently one-fifth of divorcees expecting to retire this year will do so with debts hanging over them and little extra income expected.
Clare Moffat, pensions specialist for Prudential, said: “Women’s retirement incomes are particularly vulnerable to the financial effects of divorce. Many of them may be relying on their husband’s pension and in some couples the wife may have had little input to the financial decisions that have been made over the years.
“For those divorcing or dissolving a civil partnership, a pension fund is likely to be one of the largest and most complex joint assets to be split.
Advice from specialists including a retirement expert or a financial adviser can help ensure that decisions made at the time of a divorce are to the benefit of both parties’ eventual retirement incomes.”
What is the best solution?
