Aviva’s Family Finance Report show UK couples spend an average of £14,561.00 on legal and lifestyle costs when they break up.  This is an increase of 17% since 2014.

The findings come as the latest official data shows the number of divorces in England and Wales increased by 6% between 2015 – 2016 to 106,959.  This is the first rise since 2009.

Aviva’s findings indicate that 68% of couples who divorce also have financial issues to resolve with the process taking an average 14.5 months to resolve.  This is some three months longer than in 2014, so could this be down to the number of Courts dealing with divorce having reduced?

Since 2015 all divorce applications in England and Wales must be started in one of 11 divorce centres.  For couples living in the North West this means lodging a Divorce Petition in the Family Court at Liverpool.

If matters are not agreed or if the Court raises queries with a proposed financial settlement that has been agreed between the parties then the Divorce Centre will transfer the case to the parties’ local Family Court.  This can result in delays and may well explain why the process is now taking longer.

It is always best to seek expert legal advice when considering divorce but particularly important when financial matters need to be resolved. For your free no-obligation consultation contact Ceri Thomas.