Britons are far less likely to sign prenuptial agreements than couples in France and Spain, according to new research commissioned by the app-based bank Bunq.
A survey of 5,794 people across Europe revealed that just 24 per cent of Britons would get a prenup if they were to marry, or had already signed one. By comparison, 43 per cent of respondents in France, 40 per cent in the Netherlands and 36 per cent in Spain said they would agree to a prenuptial contract.
Attitudes toward financial agreements shift significantly when couples actually marry. While 13 per cent of married couples in France and Spain have signed a prenup, only 3 per cent of married Britons have done so.
Legal binding status in Britain
Before a couple ties the knot, they can sign a contract setting out how their assets will be divided should the marriage end. Prenuptial agreements give couples greater certainty over their finances and can make divorces or separations less messy.
In England and Wales, a prenup sets out how a couple would like their finances dealt with if they divorce. However, it is not automatically binding in a divorce court, and judges can overrule the agreement.
Judges retain the final say over a financial settlement and will consider whether the agreement was entered into freely, whether both parties understood its implications, and whether the outcome is fair in the circumstances at the time of divorce. While a prenup carries considerable weight, it cannot guarantee that assets will be divided exactly as written.
Courts retain final power to decide a fair financial settlement based on a couple's individual circumstances and financial needs. For a prenup to have the best chance of being upheld, both parties should enter into it freely with full understanding, receive independent legal advice, and negotiate and sign the document well before the wedding.
Asset protection and matrimonial property
The usual purpose of a prenup in Britain is to protect assets brought into a marriage. Agreements are particularly relevant where one or both partners have children from a previous relationship, a family business, or a significant inheritance they want to protect.
Prenuptial agreements can distinguish between non-matrimonial assets acquired before the marriage and matrimonial assets built up together. For example, a couple might agree that a house owned by one person prior to marriage remains theirs, while money and property accumulated jointly during the marriage are shared.
European legal systems in France and Spain
France takes a different legal approach where prenuptial contracts hold direct binding power. A French prenup is known as a contrat de mariage and allows couples to choose what happens to their assets upon divorce.
If a French couple does not sign a marriage contract, they automatically fall under the default regime known as communauté réduite aux acquêts. Broadly speaking, assets owned before marriage remain individual property, while assets acquired during the marriage are treated as common property. Couples who want a different arrangement can formally choose one before a notary, known as a notaire.
Spain operates a similar legal system called capitulaciones matrimoniales. Under general Spanish rules, the default regime is sociedad de gananciales, which sees gains made during the marriage shared between spouses. However, Spain is complicated by regional laws. In Catalonia, the default regime is separation of property, meaning each spouse generally retains ownership of their own assets.
Importance of financial conversations
Addressing the survey findings, Bunq highlighted how legal differences across borders influence consumer choices regarding marital agreements.
Joe Wilson of Bunq said: "Unlike in France and Spain, prenups aren't automatically binding under UK law, which may be part of why Brits are less inclined to bother with them in the first place."
Joe Wilson added: "Yet our advice always remains the same, that money conversations, regardless of relationship status, wealth, or fame, remain important."
