Can a dependant be provided for from ex-husband's pension?

juicedup

I am a new poster having read and learnt lots over the last few months from this site. I'm not sure if this is the right place to post my query so apologies in advance.

I am divorced and my ex is remarried. I know his health is really bad and he's seriously, possibly terminally, unwell. We still have one dependent daughter who lives with me. I know he has several pension pots with previous employers which he may have since transferred to another provider. What I was wondering- if anything should happen to him, I understand his 2nd wife would automatically be entitled to a spouse's pension but would my daugher be able to claim any sort of dependant's benefits from his pension?

If she could claim some sort of support from his pension how would we go about that bearing in mind I don't know where his pension pots are currently held.
Any advice much appreciated.....thx

floss2

It may depend on his pension scheme & the providers, but she should be entitled to something as a dependant.

Best way to approach it will be to contact the executors of his will if the situation arises, to obtain contact details for his pensions.

Or do you think he would give you that information now? Don't forget, dependant may include being in post 16 education / at Uni.

RadoJo

Is there no way you could discuss with your ex any arrangements he has made for this eventuality - it may be that he has already considered this and taken steps to provide for your daughter. I know that when my parents split, they made all kinds of clauses in their respective wills about who would look after my brother and I if we were still dependent, and who would get what portion of assets to use for our benefit.

I really think that getting this organised now would be much better than waiting until the one person who can change things (ie your ex) is no longer able to say what they want. I know it is a difficult topic to bring up, but if you frame it purely in terms of your daughter it might make it a little less emotional.

juicedup

Thanks for the replies - unfortunately my ex hasn't supported any of our children and hasn't since we split (8 years ago) so discussing it with him is a no-no as far as I am concerned. I don't believe he will have made any provision for our children which was why I wondered, if something should happen to him whether for atleast our remaining dependant (13 years old) there was an opportunity to claim on his pension pots for some financial support.

I don't know what the process is with claiming spouses/dependents pension and whether that is something executors get involved in?
I guess my concern is if his wife were to claim a widows pension and "forgets" to inform the companies concerned of my daughters existence.

From what I've heard it doesn't look good for my ex and I just want to be prepared in advance should something happen and to know how I go about claiming for my daughter.

floss2

If his estate is over £5000 then it has to go through the Probate process, so you may be able to find out who his pensions are with then. Don't forget any life insurance policies may have provision for her too.

Yes, executors deal with distribution of any assets according to the will, paying any funeral expenses & contacting pension & life insurance companies to make claims. I guess you would have to provide evidence of her being his daughter (birth certificate?)

Don't forget, any monies will probably have to be in trust for her until she is at least 18, maybe 21, but she'll be able to apply to the trust for education costs (uni fees etc).

ellie14

I just wonder if you should put a claim in with the c s a you may have already done this ,and although you have no chance of him paying up,having a claim lodged with them may stregthen your case for support ,if anything happens .Just thinking if you had a claim now it may give you a stronger case later.I have done the same thing,and this new c s a have made mine pay up after five years,also your ex may have cashed in some pensions.dont give up thats the motto,we owe it to our children to fight for their rights.

juicedup

floss2 wrote: »

If his estate is over £5000 then it has to go through the Probate process, so you may be able to find out who his pensions are with then. Don't forget any life insurance policies may have provision for her too.

Yes, executors deal with distribution of any assets according to the will, paying any funeral expenses & contacting pension & life insurance companies to make claims. I guess you would have to provide evidence of her being his daughter (birth certificate?)

Don't forget, any monies will probably have to be in trust for her until she is at least 18, maybe 21, but she'll be able to apply to the trust for education costs (uni fees etc).

mmm - not sure how much his estate will be valued at - I suspect most things will be in his wife's name as he is self employed so it could well be less than £5k unless pensions form part of that? I'm guessing assets like the home which are in joint names automatically get transferred to his wife and therefore don't form part of the estate.
What happens if his estate is less than £5000? Does that mean it doesn't go through probate?

How would I find out who the executors are? I won't have access to any will that he may have written and what if he hasn't written one and there are no executors?

I am quite happy for any thing my daughter is entitled to, going in to trust for her for when she is older.

Sorry, I know this may look bad me asking questions like this when my ex is still on this planet but I just feel I may need to move quickly if something should happen to him.....I'm just trying to be practical!

Elli14 - as my ex is s/e and has declared minimal income the CSA has not been succesful in gaining any financial support for any of our children.

localhero

Hi Juicedup,

Any pension benefits will pass directly from the scheme's trustees to his nominated beneficiary(s), whether his estate goes to probate or not. There may be life policies that could go the same way (though some go through probate).

If his home is jointly owned with his partner, then probate may not be necessary.

If a Will does pass through probate (and you can find out later), then you, on behalf of your daughter can make a claim against his estate for provision to be made for your daughter.

In respect of the Pensions, you are it seems at the mercy of your ex's conscience - you never know, he may have made provision for her.

juicedup

localhero wrote: »

Hi Juicedup,

Any pension benefits will pass directly from the scheme's trustees to his nominated beneficiary(s), whether his estate goes to probate or not. There may be life policies that could go the same way (though some go through probate).

If his home is jointly owned with his partner, then probate may not be necessary.

If a Will does pass through probate (and you can find out later), then you, on behalf of your daughter can make a claim against his estate for provision to be made for your daughter.

In respect of the Pensions, you are it seems at the mercy of your ex's conscience - you never know, he may have made provision for her.

I thought that even though beneficiaries may be nominated - ultimately it was down to the scheme trustees to decide how any benefits are shared? I'm just thinking about our works death in service scheme as the info we have had about that states that whilst we can nominate who we want to receive any benefits and the trustees will look to carry out those wishes, they have the final decision.


I wouldn't even know where to begin to contact any trustees as 'm not sure where his pension pot is held - any ideas how I can find this out?

Re my ex having made any provisions for the children he had with me, I don't see that happening. He's already told our older children that everything he has with his wife will go to her and her children as "our" children will inherit from me....(not that I expect there will much left after raising them!)

localhero

You are right, the trustees do have discretion, but they will usually try and give effect to the wishes of their policyholder.

When you divorced, you may have had the opportunity to obtain provision for you or your daughter from his pension as part of any financial settlement.

I'm sorry, but I fear there is little you can do at this stage.

juicedup

When I divorced I didn't seek any benefits for myself from his pension as part of an agreed "clean break" settlement .
I wasn't aware - and am a little surprised - that our daughter though as a dependent is ineligible to seek any financial support.