If you are about to get a divorce or are getting a divorce and are worried about how your pensions might be affected, then this is for you.

What will happen to my pension if I get divorced?

Any private pension you hold (not state pension) will usually count as part of the assets you have together with your ex-partner, therefore, they are to be considered when deciding how to settle your finances.

To start the process and find out about your pension, you need to request a Cash equivalent transfer value (CETV) from your pension provider stating that it is for divorce purposes. Some pension schemes charge for this, and others issue for free. It is important to note that you need to do this within plenty of time as it often takes some time for the document to be provided.

Will my pension be split?

You are free to decide how you would like to split the pensions between yourselves, however, where you are not on talking terms with your ex-partner you may need to take part in negotiations to reach an agreement.

Pensions can be split in three ways. The most popular is pension sharing. This is where all or part of one party’s pension is transferred to the other party, this will allow a clean break as you both will own a separate part of the pension. The second option is pension attachment or earmarking, this is where the pension would stay in the original holder’s name, but the other party would get a share when it pays out; the person who holds the pension chooses when this happens and so this option would not offer you a clean break. The third is pension offsetting, this is where you each keep a pension in full, but you divide other assets such as money and property differently, for example – your partner may have a pension of a higher value than you and so in return you keep the marital home.

Can my ex-partner make a claim on my pension even though we are divorced?

If you did not obtain a financial consent order sealed by the court, then the answer to this is yes. Your ex-partner would have to give good reason as to why they feel it would be appropriate, especially if time has passed. It is important that when you reach an agreement about financial settlement, you have it drawn up in a consent order and sealed by the court.

If you cannot agree, or it is not safe for you to liaise with your ex-partner directly, then you can go through negotiations with solicitors, or make an application to court so that the court can decide how your pensions should be split.

Consider getting legal advice

It is important that you seek legal advice on your financial settlement. It can be complicated to attempt to work out a fair way to split a pension along with other assets. Things can go wrong with pension sharing, if you do not go about it the right way.

You can pay for a pension on divorce expert (PODE) to create a detailed report for you and your ex-partner.

Pensions are complicated assets and need treating as such.

Contact us today for half an hour’s free legal advice on financial settlement and pensions on divorce.