Quilter Cheviot launches financial support service for HNW divorcees

Quilter Cheviot, the high-net-worth (HNW) wealth management division of Quilter, has launched a new service aimed at supporting financial advisers and their clients following divorce proceedings.

The proposition, Beyond Settlement Divorce, has been developed to address the low market-wide uptake of financial planning and investment management services during and following divorce, estimated at around 7%.

It responds to this by facilitating collaboration between financial advisers and investment managers, taking an emotionally and vulnerability-informed approach to addressing a client’s financial needs following the conclusion of divorce proceedings.

It supports clients, in conjunction with a financial adviser, to deliver investment management tailored to a client’s life after divorce. This investment strategy will reflect a typical combination of needs, income requirements and timeframes and utilises cash or near-cash solutions, short-term bond strategies and long-term discretionary investment management.

Delivered by a dedicated national team of specialist investment managers, Beyond Settlement Divorce is aimed at high-net-worth clients, typically with over £1m of investable assets. 

Quilter Cheviot has worked closely with The FPOD Academy, specialists in divorce financial planning, and an industry-leading divorce coach to develop the proposition and to provide bespoke training for its investment managers, equipping them to handle complex vulnerabilities.

As part of this new proposition, Quilter Cheviot has also launched a range of fixed price pre-settlement advice services aimed at family law specialists to provide financial insight during the divorce process. These services can be introduced by solicitors to their clients while financial decisions are actively being made and consider the realities of divorce.

Beyond Settlement Divorce forms part of Quilter Cheviot’s Beyond Settlement suite, alongside Beyond Settlement Personal Injury, which was launched earlier this year and reflects a strategic focus on supporting settlement driven wealth in complex legal situations.

Michelle Andrews, managing director – distribution, proposition & marketing at Quilter Cheviot, said: “Divorce can feature some of the most consequential financial decisions a person will make, yet not enough people are getting the specialist support they need. We want to close that gap with Beyond Settlement Divorce and offer investment management in tune with financial planning and other specialists supporting clients that help them adjust to life after divorce. 

“Family finances in divorce are inherently complex, and financial understanding and control are seldom evenly distributed between spouses. Financial advisers are ideally placed to help clients establish their financial futures and introduce further technical expertise where needed. We have collaborated closely with family law specialists, divorce coaches and advisers to deliver a client-focused approach that works closely with their financial plan to allow them to move forward with confidence.”

Erin Florendine, family wealth business development manager at Quilter Cheviot, added: “Financial confidence often takes a real knock during divorce, and traditional wealth management simply isn’t built around that experience. Our specialist team brings together strong technical expertise with an emotionally aware, vulnerability informed approach, helping financial advisers support their clients to visualise what their finances need to look like moving forward.

“This means advisers can enable their clients to engage with their finances in a much more meaningful way. By simply understanding how a settlement could be invested over one, five, ten, or even twenty-five years, our services allow investment decisions to be made with clarity rather than fear. Ultimately, we want the financial elements to feel joined up and help people move into their next chapter feeling more secure, supported, and confident about the future.”