How to navigate divorce and financial planning

No one ever gets married with the intention of getting divorced, however the statistics unfortunately show that 42% of marriages end in divorce England & Wales (ONS, 2013). More than 235,000 people divorced in 2011 England & Wales (ONS, 2012) and the average age of people divorcing in 2011 was 44.5 years for men and 42.1 years for women.

That said, in England and Wales, divorce is in decline – the most recent 10 years of data show a 28% fall in the number of divorces between 2005 and 2015 (ONS, 2018).

But older people are bucking the trend. In the same period, the number of men divorcing aged 65 and over went up by 23% and the number of women of the same age divorcing increased by 38%. (Source ONS, 2018).

As a financial planner, divorce is a life event which I often help clients navigate, especially with older couples whose finances can be more complex.

Pensions, property, investments all need to be considered when a financial settlement is being negotiated. When the split between pa