Changing back to maiden name

littleredhen

has anyone had any issues with changing back to maiden name after divorce - I am currently selling my home (not the marital home) and wondering whether to wait until afterwards but just wondering if anyone came up with any negative issues

twopenny

I know people who've done it. The main issue is the number of people you have to contact and ensure that it's been changed.
With companies so hard to contact these days it's going to be a case of repeatedly checking which is a pain.
Try making a list. Keep going back to it and adding new ones you think of.

MyRealNameToo

littleredhen said:

has anyone had any issues with changing back to maiden name after divorce - I am currently selling my home (not the marital home) and wondering whether to wait until afterwards but just wondering if anyone came up with any negative issues

Not personally but you kind of need to go all in... life remains fairly painful whilst you are known by two different names at the same time and you need to be really careful that everything is done in the right name.  For example a friend who's a lawyer changed their "personal" name but kept their "professional" name the same. Problem came when the team PA booked a flight and forgot their passport was in their personal name. 

My wife has a similar issue, here she changed her name when we got married to follow UK traditions but changing your name back home is very different and if she changed it wouldnt match her name here. Its lead to a headache with her UK passport as her non-UK one isnt in the same name (its also lapsed 5 years ago but HMPO dont seem to care its lapsed) 

flaneurs_lobster

The contributions above are useful, valid and welcome but I think the OP's query is specifically about changing name before/during/after the sale of a property?

It's not going to help if the name on the deeds doesn't match that which you wish to be known as, I'd get the major sale out of the way first.

Then sort out passport/driving licence as the official ID you'll need* to start changing your name at banks, building societies, utilities, electoral register etc.

* Not actually needed, a formal declaration is all that's actually required, but I bet an official ID with your new name will help.

Do wonder why anyone would change their name on marriage, daft outdated tradition. With 50% ending in divorce anyway, why saddle yourself with a logistical (and financial) pain in the rear-end. Smacks of insecurity from the get-go.

Mands

flaneurs_lobster said:.

Do wonder why anyone would change their name on marriage, daft outdated tradition. With 50% ending in divorce anyway, why saddle yourself with a logistical (and financial) pain in the rear-end. Smacks of insecurity from the get-go.

What are the children of the marriage called?

There are plenty of folks who prefer the unity of being "the Jones family" despite one them not being born Jones. When Sally Smith calls kindergarten to make sure her daughter Jessica White remembered her lunch I promise you at least one conversation involving confusion about Miss White not being the child of Mrs Smith.

Should these things happen? No. Do they? Goodness, but yes. 

I didn't change my name on marriage and gloried in the admin I avoided. Yet I still have some government issued documentation of MyFirstNameHisLastName. "But ... that's not my name" is a great running song but also more effort than it's worth. 

*Not* changing names doesn't get rid of the work, it just makes it a different shape and size and flavour. 

flaneurs_lobster

Mands said:

I didn't change my name on marriage and gloried in the admin I avoided. Yet I still have some government issued documentation of MyFirstNameHisLastName. "But ... that's not my name" is a great running song but also more effort than it's worth. 

*Not* changing names doesn't get rid of the work, it just makes it a different shape and size and flavour. 

Trivial example - every single time we go into a restaurant and they ask for the name on the reservation we have to ask each other who's name is it in?

It's been a long time since an assumption about being "Mr & Mrs Smith" was made anywhere, even joint memberships with somewhat staid organisations like National Trust & U3A will address correspondence to "FirstName LastName & FirstName LastName"

littleredhen

Thanks everyone - valid point re deeds etc so when I buy another property I will do it then as I will need to change my addresses etc - I got married in 1995 so it was a while ago and things have changed considerably

littleredhen

Mands said:

flaneurs_lobster said:.

Do wonder why anyone would change their name on marriage, daft outdated tradition. With 50% ending in divorce anyway, why saddle yourself with a logistical (and financial) pain in the rear-end. Smacks of insecurity from the get-go.

What are the children of the marriage called?

There are plenty of folks who prefer the unity of being "the Jones family" despite one them not being born Jones. When Sally Smith calls kindergarten to make sure her daughter Jessica White remembered her lunch I promise you at least one conversation involving confusion about Miss White not being the child of Mrs Smith.

Should these things happen? No. Do they? Goodness, but yes. 

I didn't change my name on marriage and gloried in the admin I avoided. Yet I still have some government issued documentation of MyFirstNameHisLastName. "But ... that's not my name" is a great running song but also more effort than it's worth. 

*Not* changing names doesn't get rid of the work, it just makes it a different shape and size and flavour. 

The children do have our surname but are fully grown adults and my ex has remarried so I don't really want to keep his name anymore - just saying!

Spendless

I used to have a job where I looked at name change docs. We would look for supporting evidence so you couldnt just put on the name change form
Was littleredhen
Now - smallbluegoose.

We'd want to see something like a deed poll or I think there was something that a solictor or similar signed but I cant remember name of form or we might have accepted your marriage certificate showing that you on once had the surname x changed it to y and the divorce docs to support you changing it back to x.

Mands

littleredhen said:

Mands said:

flaneurs_lobster said:.

Do wonder why anyone would change their name on marriage, daft outdated tradition. With 50% ending in divorce anyway, why saddle yourself with a logistical (and financial) pain in the rear-end. Smacks of insecurity from the get-go.

What are the children of the marriage called?

There are plenty of folks who prefer the unity of being "the Jones family" despite one them not being born Jones. When Sally Smith calls kindergarten to make sure her daughter Jessica White remembered her lunch I promise you at least one conversation involving confusion about Miss White not being the child of Mrs Smith.

Should these things happen? No. Do they? Goodness, but yes. 

I didn't change my name on marriage and gloried in the admin I avoided. Yet I still have some government issued documentation of MyFirstNameHisLastName. "But ... that's not my name" is a great running song but also more effort than it's worth. 

*Not* changing names doesn't get rid of the work, it just makes it a different shape and size and flavour. 

The children do have our surname but are fully grown adults and my ex has remarried so I don't really want to keep his name anymore - just saying!

Perhaps.I wasn't clear. I wasn't asking what *your* children had as a surname, rather that this idea that a woman has zero reason to change her name (when she very much might want to share a surname with her children) seems blinkered.

Change, don't change, don't assume others reality is the same as yours, respect other people choices ... that was my point!

jackieblack

I discovered, after divorcing, that even though someone might choose to be known by their husband’s surname after marriage, their legal name remains the one on their birth certificate (unless changed by Deed Poll), so I just told everyone and every organisation that I no longer wished to be known by my ex-husband’s surname and was reverting to the name on my birth certificate. IIRC I was able to change the name online on a couple of things with no evidence required and then used those for evidence on some others. Some organisations wanted to see my birth certificate and I think I had to change my driving licence before I could get a new passport, but it was really much simpler and easier than I’d anticipated.