Surveys released this week by legal firms reveal the financial complexities of divorce across the UK and the ongoing emotional implications caused by financial pressures.
Data from Stowe Family Law has identified a regional pattern in UK divorces, with eight out of 10 of the most financially complex cases taking place in southern England. And, according to Slater and Gordon, the ongoing implications of tangled finances result in a fifth of divorced couples continuing to live together in the family home after the end of the marriage.
The Financially Complex Divorce Index developed by Stowe Family Law assesses five equally weighted factors using publicly available data: estimated landlord density per 100,000 residents (HMRC data), average pension wealth (Department for Work and Pensions), average house prices (HM Land Registry), divorce degrees granted (Ministry of Justice) and estimated high-net-worth small family owned businesses (ONS business data).
It reveals what the firm terms “a stark divorce wealth divide” across England and Wales, with London divorces nearly five times more financially complex than those in the North East of England.
The national average score on the index is 34.37, which rises to 56.37 in London and falls to 11.79 in the North East.
Eight of the 10 areas with the highest scores are in London, the South East or the East of England, which Stowe Family Law attributes to high value property portfolios, rental assets, family businesses and large pensions being more common.
“While a separation in the North East may primarily involve splitting savings and a single family home, couples divorcing in London or the Home Counties frequently face a far more complex picture,” the firm explained.
“Multiple properties, investment portfolios, company shares, international assets and decades of pension growth can all require specialist forensic valutation.”
According to Slater and Gordon, the financial implications of divorce are resulting in as many as one in five divorced couples remaining together in the family home after the end of a marriage.
The firm’s survey of 2,000 UK adults who are married, in a civil partnership, divorced or going through a divorce found that only a quarter of respondents (24%) were able to move out of the shared home within the first month of separation.
Financial strain played a significant role in living arrangements, with 35% of respondents saying the cost of living presented a barrier to separating or moving out.
A quarter (26%) said they lacked sufficient savings to begin the divorce process or move out, with one in four saying joint property ownership was the major obstacle to separating.
For respondents who had left the family home, the average time between the end of the marriage and leaving was seven months. For those aged over 55, it took an average 20 months to leave, with 29% of this age group not moving at all.
The research highlights the emotional cost of finances preventing a clean break: 43% said the delay increased their stress and anxiety, 35% said it led to more arguments and a third said it made their divorce more toxic.
“There is no single right way to approach separation or divorce,” said Jenniffer Brunt, head of family law at Slater and Gordon. “Every couple has different circumstances, pressures and priorities and it’s important to recognise what works for one family may not work for another.”
