How would pension be split in event of divorce?

linz

Hi all,

Have cross posted this incase someone in here may know.

Basically my mum and dad are going through yet another really bad patch and this time he has been acting so unreasonable towards her that i think my mum has been pushed too far. She was explaining something to me this weekend and asking for advice but I don't know what to tell her.

In a nutshell, he opened a Prudential pension in 1982, paying £60 a month. At the time, he didn't understand standing orders, or so he said, so he asked if my mum would start paying it from her account and he would 'sort it out.'
Believe it or not, (I couldn't when she told me) my dad never did 'sort it' and despite him being the main breadwinner since then, mum, for whatever reason, has carried on paying his pension for 27 years!

She asked me if she would be able to recoup some of this in the event that they split up, or would my dad be entitled to it all despite not having contributed anything because of it being in his name.

I know she needs legal advice and I will gently persuade her to book an appointment with the citizens advice. Thought i'd ask on here too though, to see if some of you kind people might be able to offer advice.

Thanks in advance
Lynsey

dunstonh

It will depend on the divorce settlement. If they start getting into arguments about her paying into his pension then they may as well start arguing over who paid for the food and who ate the most. The only winners in that case are the solicitors.

EdInvestor

The pension will come under the joint assets in the financial settlement, along with their home and any savings etc.Usually these are split half and half, and the pension can itself be split, or can be offset against other assets, reducing his share of the house value for instance..

linz

Thanks guys, was hoping it wasn't all going to be bad news.