- Basildon 01268 244144
- Chelmsford 01245 453800
- Colchester 01206 217309
The importance of good financial planning and divorce
The prospect of divorce inevitably equates to heartache and difficulty but our experts are on hand to help you through the entire process.
Whilst most people immediately think to engage the services of a solicitor when going through a divorce, few consider the value a financial planner can bring.
Engaging the services of a financial planner as early as possible during divorce proceedings can help make sure pensions are given proper consideration and provide greater clarity and focus that will help you rebuild your future financial plans.
According to research by Legal and General Retail Retirement released on 28 October 2020*, only 12% of people getting divorced include pension savings when sharing out assets. However, pensions can often be one of the couple’s greatest assets, second only to the matrimonial home.
Thinking about how pensions may be shared during divorce can help significantly in later life, as one person’s pension savings may have been intended to support both parties had the marriage continued. This should not be overlooked. For example, during the marriage, one spouse may have given up work or taken a career break to care for children. Neither party wants to find their retirement in jeopardy and face the prospect of struggling financially later in life.
Divorce is an extremely unsettling time and plans that had been made jointly are now thrown out of the window. A financial planner can help you look ahead towards your new goals and objectives, which are likely to look quite different to the future you had envisaged as a couple.
A solicitor can help you divide up your assets, however, they are unable to advise on what to do with your share of those assets. This is exactly what a financial planner can do; help you achieve your new objectives and seek a way forward following the separation.
A financial planner will look at your financial situation as a whole and provide a realistic plan to meet your financial goals, whatever they might now look like. He or she will consider whether you have enough readily accessible cash for short-term needs, including holidays and other enjoyable pursuits as well as the more mundane broken boilers and leaky pipes to be fixed (for example!), to more long-term planning including retirement and inheritance tax planning. They will also consider your income needs and preservation of capital and create a tailored plan unique to your individual requirements.
Engaging a financial planner early in the conversation when considering your options on divorce can be a significant benefit and help you to emerge from this very difficult period of your life in a stronger financial position than you may have thought possible.
Birkett Long is in an ideal position to help in these circumstances, as both solicitors and financial planners will work together to guide you through your divorce and help you achieve the best financial position possible in order that you can move on with the rest of your life.
If you would like to speak to a financial planner, please contact Kate Barnett on 01206 217 356, or email kate.barnett@birkettlong.co.uk
