Out of all the people bowed under heavy debts in the UK, 52% are in a bad state thanks to divorce and separation proceedings. This is a staggering figure compared to other casualties. 18% of the respondents said that the bread winner of the family had died, 15% were suffering from major illnesses that kept them away from regular work, 5% were physically disabled, and 10% had lost their jobs.

In the major group, i.e. those affected adversely by divorce, there was a split again. One lot comprised of men and women who had not been able to make a good enough deal while divorcing, and the other group was mostly made up of women who had been handed out an ?amicable? divorce but were in a state of financial confusion. Many such instances were the result of either bad planning, unfair deals or loopholes in the law itself.

Women and Divorce

Women in the UK do not fare well when it comes to divorce in general. No matter how many times the newspapers tell us that women have been accumulating wealth through death and divorce of their partners, the fact is that over 70% of women divorcees are financially worse off after divorce than before it. They are the unsung lot, because obviously none of them are attractive celebrities and, therefore, not worth the attention of the tabloids.

They are also often burdened with children and the single mother phenomenon has reached alarming proportions here. Over 90% of all single parents are women, and most of them divorcees. Women are often given a raw deal because of their unawareness of financial benefits and lack of pre-planning. To make matters worse, they are caught in the vicious circle of poverty where they can't earn to their full potential because of children, but need the money precisely because of the children. Most of these women, whenever surveyed, have stated clearly that they would be in a position to earn much more only if proper childcare was available somewhere.

Financial Tips for Women

It is very difficult to plan a divorce, but it is not impossible. Usually a woman is too devastated by a divorce to think of anything else. But the fact remains that you will be in greater trouble if you don't plan how you will go about managing your life after divorce before you take the plunge and step out. Here are a few financial tips; they are more to give you an idea about how it can be designed, because you need to formulate your own set depending on your circumstances.

• The first thing requirement is a sound legal knowledge of the divorce proceedings. Thereafter, you need to take a few decisions on the basis of discussions with your spouse. You may consider visiting a counsellor/mediator to have it worked out if your husband does not want to talk to you. Remember, the more you mutually agree, the more you both save.



• You may have doubts about your spouse's integrity to comply with court orders. In that case, get a consent order created from the financial angle and enforced by law. This agreement will also contain your decision on property distribution, the car, child maintenance, asset distribution and other such issues.



• You may consider rewriting your will so that you are not linked financially with your spouse under any circumstances even if you are divorced. Do this definitely if you have children.



• Also, if you have children, or are planning to remarry or enter another relationship with your current partner, financial factors need to be taken into serious consideration. Do you want third-party involvement in these proceedings? Remember, your present partner or your child should not suffer because you did not put your finances in order before quitting the marriage.



• While you will save a lot of money if you go for a DIY, online, or supermarket divorce bought off the shelf, you will still incur certain costs over and above the face value of your chosen package. All those days when you will not work, shifting costs, any settlements you need to make, arranging for your child's education and daily expenses ? all of these are typical overheads that women tend to leave out of the plan.



• If you are moving, do a proper research and draw up a list of expenses before you shift into the new location.